Rama bars finance body from seeing Margot
Council reminded of its job to OK/reject budget, not to find source of funds
CEBU City Mayor Michael Rama will not allow the executive department’s local finance committee (LFC) to meet with some members of the City Council relating to the proposed P2.8 billion first supplement budget (SB 1) this year.
“No (I will not allow that). She is just going to tell them what to do. Who is the mayor now? She should be asking me what I should tell them to do. That is not correct,” he said.
The legislative body, through the budget and finance committee, wanted to meet with the LFC to discuss how to solve the impasse on the approval of the SB 1.
The budget and finance committee head, Councilor Margarita Osmeña, had suggested for the LFC to look for other sources of funds to support some items under the SB 1.
This includes the P77.3-million productivity enhancement incentive of the City Hall employees and the P87 million additional funds for the garbage collection and disposal.
During the council’s session last Wednesday, Osmeña had said that the executive could use the P1.1 billion balance from the continuing appropriations for capital outlay from 2007 to 2015 to support the SB 1.
Case filed
She said that the P8.35 billion initial earning from the sale of the South Road Properties (SRP) lot could not be used considering the case recently filed against the council questioning how the property was disposed.
Osmeña then suggested to have the P1.1 billion realigned.
In his news conference yesterday, Rama said the job of the council is to approve or disapprove the SB 1 and not to identify the sources of funds.
As in his previous statement, the mayor said it is the job of the executive department to identify what funds will support a budget.
In the case of SB 1, the chief executive has identified that it will be supported by the sale of the SRP.
“I already submitted the SB 1. It has been received by the council. Why will she have a meeting? If she wants a meeting, she should see me and I would tell her what to do and I will repeat, approve or disapprove the budget. It is as simple as that,” he said.
Osmeña said, though, that the council needs to be prudent about the spending of the P8.35 billion down payment from the sale of the SRP.
She said that if the court will decide in favor on the case filed by Atty. Romulo Torres, the council will have the burden to refund the P8.35 billion.
Torres, a resident of Barangay Basak San Nicolas, wants the court to stop the council from appropriating funds from the sale of the SRP by declaring the sale as invalid.
Torres had filed a civil petition for declaratory relief and injunction before the Regional Trial Court. He also asked for a temporary restraining order.