City now using ‘invalidly passed’ annual budget

CEBU, Philippines - Pending the review of the Department of Budget and Management, Cebu City government has started using its P6.4 billion 2016 budget.

City Budget Officer Marietta Gumia said they have started using this year’s budget allocation last Tuesday after receiving a copy of the budget ordinance which was “deemed approved” by the council.

“I have nothing to do because there is a direction to execute,” she said.

According to her, the City Budget Office has started executing the payroll for the salaries and wages of the City Hall employees for two weeks since the start of the year.

Earlier this year, the city government temporarily used the reenacted budget after acting mayor Edgardo Labella questioned the validity of the enactment of the budget ordinance.

He cited Article 107, paragraph (g), of the IRR of the Local Government Code of 1991 which provides that, “no ordinance or resolution passed by the sanggunian in a regular or special session duly called for the purpose shall be valid unless approved by a majority of the members present, there being a quorum. Any ordinance or resolution authorizing or directing the payment of money or creating liability, shall require the affirmative vote of a majority of all the sanggunian members for its passage.”

The budget ordinance, Labella said, should have been passed by the affirmative vote of at least 10 members, considering there are 18 council members, including him.

But according to him, based on the records, only nine out of 12 members present during a special session on December 18 voted to approve the said ordinance.

City Attorney Jerone Castillo said the city government used its budget this year without prejudice to Labella’s stand that it was not actually passed by the legislative body.

“It will not say it will be in conflict with the stand of the acting mayor because naa’y safety mechanisms that the budget should operate. Naa ma’y resolution ang council nga ipagamit ang 2016 budget but that does not necessarily follow that the acting mayor is in agreement with it,” he said.

Labella, nevertheless, acceded to the move of the city’s Local Finance Committee, saying he does not want the city government’s operations paralyzed, although he remains firm on his stand that the budget was not validly enacted by the members of the council.

“They have already used it. So, let this be reviewed by the DBM. If the DBM deems it invalid, then they will have 90 days to come up with a budget,” he said.  — (FREEMAN)