Cebu City Mayor Raymond Alvin Garcia has proposed a P17.9 billion budget for 2025, | CDN Photo/ Pia Piquero [FILE PHOTO]
Garcia announced during a press conference on October 21 that Cebu City would focus on realistic targets based on its actual revenue capacity.
The proposed budget will be formally presented at the City Council session on October 23 and is expected to be referred to the Committee on Budget and Finance, chaired by Councilor Noel Wenceslao.
“I want a realistic budget og unsa ray atong makolekta, mao ra say atong igasto. Dili kay 25 or 50 bilyon ang atong expenses, pero ang atong nakolekta dise-otso ra o kinse. So this is what I want to do for next year, nga we have a realistic budget wherein ang atong income ug expenses magtakdo, dili nga ‘shortfall’ ang atong income unya sobra ang atong expenses,” Garcia said.
READ MORE:
Raymond Alvin Garcia is officially Mayor of Cebu City
Garcia drops ‘Singapore-like’ vision for Cebu City
Cebu City Council slashes Rama’s proposed P100B budget to P25B
The 2025 budget plan prioritizes several essential services. Personnel services take the largest share at P2.4 billion, followed by P1.1 billion for senior citizens’ financial aid, P400 million for barangays, P550 million for garbage collection and disposal, and P450 million for socialized housing.
Other allocations include P240 million for street repairs, P400 million for the Cebu City Hall Automated Management Program (CHAMP), and P200 million for climate change adaptation projects.
Health services and housing remain top priorities for Garcia. He explained that, although there is no additional funding for the Cebu City Medical Center (CCMC) in this year’s budget, his administration is relying on a partnership with the Cebu Medical Society to finish the remaining floors of the hospital.
“Ang uban nga portion will also be from katong atong agreement with Cebu Medical Society nga sila’y mo-continue sa 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, and even eleventh floors. So, priority baya nako ang health, so that is one of the things. Tingali mga hospital equipment nalang once everything is finished, mao nay atong iprioritize,” he said.
READ MORE:
COA says Cebu City lacks cash reserves for Singapore-like vision
House finalizes P1.3-B cut in 2025 OVP budget
Budget reforms pushing PH toward ‘A’ rating
The P17.9 billion budget proposal is a notable contrast from previous budget plans.
In 2023, former Mayor Michael Rama proposed a massive P100 billion budget for 2024. Of this, P77.066 billion was earmarked for capital outlays, including flood prevention measures. However, after thorough deliberations, the City Council reduced the proposal to P25 billion.
Rama also proposed a P51.4 billion budget for 2023 to fund his vision of transforming Cebu City into a “Singapore-like” metropolis. Yet, the Commission on Audit (COA) flagged the city’s income projections as “unrealistic,” particularly due to its heavy reliance on Real Property Tax (RPT).
Although the 2023 budget was approved at P50 billion, by October 2023, the city’s actual collection stood at only P7.5 billion, well short of what was needed to support the proposed programs.
COA’s 2023 audit flagged the city’s financial planning. It noted that the “overestimation” of revenue, particularly RPT created a gap between income projections and actual collections.
The city projected P40 billion in RPT for 2023 but managed to collect only a little over P1 billion. COA reported that the 2023 fiscal year was the “most aggressive” in terms of overestimated income projections, leading to a mismatch between expectations and fiscal realities.
With the previous income shortfalls, Garcia stated the need to align expectations with reality. He said that the city had been collecting less than projected and expressed his goal of setting a budget that could genuinely be met rather than just creating unrealistic numbers.
“I just want to be realistic, and I want to manage the expectations of our people. Atong mga Cebuano nga moingon, ‘Dako kaayo ang budget, unya wa lagi tay makit-an kaayo nga improvement sa infrastructure o sa services.’ That’s because gamay ra kaayo atong nakolekta,” he said.
Garcia is hopeful that the council will approve his proposed 2025 budget. He expressed frustration from his time as vice mayor, noting that past budgets often did not align with the city’s financial realities.
“Very much positive. I think the councilors will say, ‘Alleluia! We now have a realistic budget.’ That’s my personal take on it because when I was Vice Mayor, we always had difficulty. Sus paeta, P100 billion ang gi-propose. Unsaon mani? Unrealistic man! P50 billion gi-propose. Unsaon man? Unrealistic mani! P25 billion gi-propose, lisud ba! I think this one is a more realistic budget where we can really say that duol-duol na ni sa atong collection,” Garcia said.