P21.6B worth of Capitol properties to be turned over on June 30

THE outgoing administration of Gov. Hilario Davide III will turn over P21.6 billion worth of real estate properties owned by the Cebu Provincial Government to the incoming leadership of governor-elect Gwendolyn Garcia.

The Provincial General Services Office (PGSO) recently finished its inventory of the properties acquired by the Capitol as of Dec. 31, 2018. This move is part of the preparations initiated by the Local Governance Transition Team.

PGSO head Jone Sepe said the properties are in different parts of Cebu. These include the Capitol compound, the Sudlon lots in Barangay Lahug, Cebu City, Balili property in the City of Naga and the 93-1 lots in Cebu City.

The other Province-owned properties are the airstrip in Bantayan town in northern Cebu and lots occupied by the Central Command of the Armed Forces of the Philippines in Cebu City.

Meanwhile, the Cebu Provincial Government had an actual revenue of P344.2 million in the first three months of 2019, according to the annual budget and financial statement from the Provincial Accounting Office (PAO).

Provincial Accountant Marieto Ipil said he prepared the papers about Capitol’s financial standing, as these are needed by the new administration.

He said the PAO is responsible for releasing funds for Capitol’s expenses.

Ipil said the Capitol’s general fund currently stands at P1.2 billion, while its special education fund (SEF) is P53.6 million.

He added that the Capitol spent P861 million from the general fund and P10.5 million from the SEF from January to March 2019.

The money was allocated for the salaries of Capitol employees, maintenance and other operating expenses, and payments to the contractors, among others.

The total balance of Capitol funds from Jan. 1 until March 31 is P344,205,879.29, of which P301,011,156.07 was added to the general fund and P43,194,723,22 was added to the SEF. /