Cebu City is 5th richest city in the Philippines; richest outside NCR

Cebu City’s uptown business district skyline |CDN File Photo

CEBU CITY, Philippines — For the fifth time in a row, Cebu City remains in the list of the top five richest cities in the country based on the Commission on Audit (COA) 2018 fiscal report submitted to the House of Representatives.

Cebu City’s assets in 2018 remained to be at P33.8 billion, just like the assets it recorded in 2017, according to the COA report received by the Lower House on October 16, 2019.

Cebu City was dethroned from its fourth spot in last year’s COA report by Pasig City whose assets rose to P38 billion in 2018 compared to its P33.7 billion assets in 2017.

Despite being moved a notch lower, Cebu City still remains to be the richest city outside of the National Capitol Region, making it the premier city in terms of assets in the Visayas and Mindanao. Davao City also made the top ten list at the ninth spot, with P16 billion assets.

Cebu City Mayor Edgardo Labella welcomed the COA report, saying this proved that Cebu City is capable to do more for its constituents as it has the income for provide more services.

However, the mayor took note that the assets of Cebu City barely changed in a year, which indicated that the city needs to intensify its tax collection drive and reassess property valuation in order to increase its revenue.

“We do not need to raise the taxes. It is not the right time. What we need is to collect the taxes efficiently,” he said.

Aside from taxes, Labella said he expected the city’s income to rise once the P307 billion development of the SM-Ayala Consortium will be completed at the South Road Properties, as these would bring in more investors, jobs, and taxes for the city.

However, the mayor said naming Cebu City as one of the country’s richest cities is of no use if the residents do not feel it, and if poverty will remain rampant  in the city.

Labella said increasing revenue could result to alleviating the living condition of  the city’s marginalized sector through socialized housing, subsidized or even free health services, and free education.

Labella, during his first months in office, has so far initiated the development of mid-rise tenement social housing in Barangay Lorega and the setting up of the Cebu City College.

The mayor said his administration aims to provide more relevant public services so that the residents can get to enjoy the riches of the city and that naming Cebu City as the fifth richest city in the country will not just stay on paper or a mere COA report. /elb