City Council seeks delayed reports

CEBU, Philippines - The Cebu City council is seeking for the outlay and implementations reports of the Accelerated Social Amelioration Program (ASAP) which have been noted to be delayed since 2012.

City Council majority floor leader Margarita Osmeña pointed out that ASAP has not yet submitted their outlay report since the previous year and should therefore be submitted to the Committee on Budget and Finance, which she chairs.

She added that an initial implementation report of their projects conducted from January to October this year should also be inclu-ded.

Osmeña stressed that this is in line with their principle on transparency and accountability in implementing projects for the city.

The last time her committee received a report on expenditures from ASAP was in 2011, said Osmeña.

ASAP, according to Osmeña, is managed by a board that is “mandated to create a program of amelioration, set its implementing rules and regulations to ensure equitable application and sustainability as well as gua-rantee that maximum benefits are given to those who are socially-disadvantaged.”

The city government gave  ASAP a  budget  of  P22 million this year which was an increase of 47.5 percent in the appropriated budget for the program in 2012 which was at P14,910,956.

In an interview with the media, Osmeña said water hoses and barrels were reportedly given to 10 mountain barangays, which she questioned since these items are not under ASAP’s ideal projects like “supplemental daily fee-ding” which is in line with the objective of the said program.  (FREEMAN)