Bowing to public pressure, the City Council finally passed the PHP 1.4 Billion Budget of Dumaguete City for 2025 during its regular session last Tuesday.
The budget was passed after another intense discussion at the Sangguniang Panlunsod as they scrutinized the items on the Traffic Lights with the CCTV system and the budget for a waste segretator for the dumpsite.
“We want to pass the budget because this is what the people need. But we have to pass it in the right way,” Councilor JoeKen Arbas said.
With the rules suspended, City Planning Officer Leonides Caro explained that the City Development Council executive committee had requested last July 2024 for the reversion of appropriation of 11,500,000 from various unobligated balance for the years from 2009 to 2020 and to appropriate the same to purchase traffic lights with a CCTV system in a five-year Lease-to-own agreement.
But this request was not acted upon. And when the CDC prepared the Annual Investment Plan for 2025, the Lease-to-Own mode of purchase was replaced by Outright Procurement in the budget.
Councilor JV Imbo said he thought the budget of Php 22.9 million was to purchase a traffic light and CCTV system. “If we lease-to-own for five years, it will amount to Php 22.9 million per year totalling P114 M after a five-year period.
Caro said the Php 22.9 million budget for the CCTV for 2025 would not be enough for the entire project. “We can go phase by phase utilizing the 22.9 million, but it is not enough.” She said that if purchased outright, the traffic lights will only cost Php 80 million.
When asked how the TWG came up with the budget to purchase the traffic lights for Php 22.9 million Traffic personnel Gilbert Ablong admitted that the figure is not exact. “That is only an estimate,” he said. The members of the Technical Working Group (TWG) admitted that they have no expertise in traffic light systems.
With the admission of the TWG that they had no detailed study for the purchase of traffic lights and the CCTV system, Councilor Imbo moved to approve the budget but instead of the P22.9 million, they reduced the budget to Php 1,000.
The Council likewise reduced the P68 million budget asking for the garbage segregating machine to Php 1,000 pending the submission of a detailed study on the project. Imbo said we are just asking the TWG to come up with a good proposal. We cannot just approve it the way it is.
Councilor Arbas, for his part, said the budget could even go as low as zero. “Anyway, it is in the budget. We wish to have this approved. There is no clear plan. They want Php 22.9 million but they don’t know how to do it,” he said.
About the sorting machine, Arbas said they are asking for a Php 68 million budget to buy a machine but they cannot present even a photo of this machine.
The Budget, with the deductions in the request for the traffic lights and the waste segregating machine, was passed on third reading Tuesday morning when Councilor Maxino pointed out that the budget was void, pointing to a provision that the budget should reach 20 percent of the Development Fund.
Councilor Jose Baldado called the approved budget a “mockery in the process, because the essence of the budget was removed.”
When the session resumed in the afternoon, Maxino moved to reconsider the vote on the Budget on account that the budget is inoperative.
Arbas agreed with Maxino but said while it may be true that the Budget should not go below the 20 percent fund, it is also clear that there is also no plan on the part of the executive but they just asked for money.
To reconcile both positions, Arbas moved to pass the Budget Ordinance as presented with certain conditions.
He suggested that a TWG should be created, composed of experts in traffic light systems and waste segregation systems coming from the private sector. Once the TWG submits its recommendations to the Executive, the Council will continue to have oversight functions without encroaching on the power of the Executive.
The motion of Karissa to reconsider the Budget Ordinance was approved and the Budget was then brought back to second reading so discussions could take place.
In the end, all councilors present voted to approve the Budget along with the inputs of councilor Arbas.
Councilor Imbo said the realization and acceptance by the majority of the error in passing the Budget Ordinance that morning “goes to show how sensible the majority is, that it is willing to listen and humble enough to accept our weaknesses,” he said. (AP)
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Photo Caption: Dumaguete City Vice Mayor Maisa Sagarbarria and Councilor Karissa Tolentino compare notes on the 2025 City Budget before it was finally approved by the Sangguniang Panlunsod during its regular Tuesday session. (Photo by Roy Bustillo)
