Newest councilor is also City’s richest, so far

At least seven or less than half of Cebu City’s elected officials beat the April 30 deadline for the annual Statement of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth (SALN).

If more managed to file their SALN on the last day to do so, these were not yet made available to journalists.

As of last Monday, only the SALNs of Councilors Renato Osmeña, Joel Garganera, Pastor Alcover Jr., Jerry Guardo, Eugenio Gabuya, Mary Ann delos Santos, and Joy Augustus Young were available.

Out of the seven, Osmeña declared the highest net worth amounting to some P39.1 million.

Osmeña assumed office as city councilor last September to replace Nendell Hanz Abella, now a commissioner of the National Labor Relations Commission.

Under Republic Act 3019 or the Anti-graft and Corrupt Practices Act and Republic Act 6713 or the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees, public officials are required to submit their SALNs every year to the Office of the Ombudsman.

In his SALN, Councilor Osmeña listed P4 million worth of real properties. He also declared some P42.3 million in personal properties, which included four high-end motorcycles, three cars, cash, jewelry, business shares and personal belongings.

He reported some P3.2 million in liabilities.

SunStar Cebu has yet to secure a copy of the joint SALN of Mayor Tomas Osmeña and Councilor Margarita Osmeña.

Councilor delos Santos, who had the highest declared net worth in 2016, declared P15.02 million for 2017. The amount is a little higher than the P14.4 million net worth she reported in 2016.

Councilor Alcover declared a net worth of P6.6 million, with some P4 million in real properties and P2.5 million in investments. Both Councilors Guardo and Young declared a net worth of P5 million, while Councilor Gabuya declared a net worth of P5.1 million. Councilor Garganera has declared P830,000 as his net worth, which is the lowest, so far, among those whose SALNS were submitted on time.