Gwen tells dept heads to base 2020 budget on 2019’s actual expenditure

Cebu Governor Gwendolyn Garcia. | Irene Sino Cruz

CEBU CITY, Philippines — The offices under the Cebu provincial government  will need to set their 2020 budget based on their actual expenditures this 2019.

This was the guideline set by Cebu Governor Gwendolyn Garcia, as the heads of offices at the Capitol prepare to present their proposed budget on Saturday, September 21.

Garcia said that basing the proposed budget on the actual expenditure of the previous year is necessary in order to put “rhyme and reason in the preparation of the budget.”

This means that for new projects, the office heads will have to defend the importance of the projects before they can get the nod of the Committee on Budget on Appropriations of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan (SP).

While office supplies and fuel allocation will be included in the budget of the offices, Garcia said the procurement of these items in 2020 will be centralized under the Provincial General Services Office (PGSO).

Garcia said submitting separate procurement requests for office supplies is inefficient because of the long procurement process that each item will have to go through.

The governor added that the province may also be able to get its office supplies at a lower cost since the purchase will be in bulk.

The budget proposal for the salaries of Capitol employees will be delegated to the Human Resource Management Office (HRMO) of the Capitol, Garcia said./elb