Prosecutors seek allowance hike from CH

CEBU, Philippines - Cebu City Prosecutor Nicolas Sellon requested Mayor Michael Rama to increase their monthly allowances from P10,000 to P18,000, while Regional State Prosecutor Fernando Gubalane convinced the mayor to reinstate their monthly allowance from the city.

The matter was discussed during the regular session of the Cebu City Council last Wednesday because Sellon and Gubalane sent copies of their letters to Cebu City Councilor Margarita “Margot” Osmeña, chairperson of the committee on budget and finance.

Not satisfied with merely sending letters to City Hall, some of the city prosecutors trooped to Rama’s office Wednesday afternoon to explain their sentiments.

Sellon said he and other city-assigned public prosecutors were dismayed to find that their last year’s bud get of P3,504,000 for allowance was reduced to only P2,942,334 for 2012.

According to Sellon, the reduced budget for their office is not enough to cover the allowances of one city prosecutor, an assistant regional state prosecutor who is assigned in the city and 28 assistant city prosecutors.

Sellon said while the allowances of the 22 Regional Trial Court judges remained at P24,000, the allowances of the city prosecutors have been reduced with the appointment of two new prosecutors this year.

“It cannot also be denied that recent prices of commodities and increase in oil prices have made life more difficult for all of us,” Sellon explained as he asked for an P8,000 additional monthly allowance for each of them.

Gubalane, for his part, said he and his five other regional state prosecutors were surprised when the City did not allocate any budget for their monthly allowance when the 2012 Annual Budget was prepared.

According to Gubalane, they have since been receiving monthly allowances from the City. Their budget last year was P1,134,000 but this was not included this year.

Rama already allocated this amount in the Supplemental Budget No. 1 that he submitted to the City Council.

The mayor assured he will study the request of the city prosecutors. — /JPM (FREEMAN)