Archival, Osmeña to launch 24/7 City Hall services

The Cebu City Hall glows at night. | CDN Digital photo by Rick Gabuya

CEBU CITY, Philippines — Cebu City is set to become the first local government unit in the country to implement round-the-clock operations at City Hall.

This comes after Mayor-elect Nestor Archival Sr. pushed forward with his “Mayor of the Night” initiative aimed at expanding public service accessibility.

Archival, who won a landslide victory in the May 2025 midterm elections, said the 24/7 system will allow constituents, especially those who work during the day, to access government services even at night.

“This is the only City Hall probably in the whole country that never sleeps,” Archival said in an interview.

“We designed this for people who work during the day, so they can still access government services at night,” he added.

READ: Nestor Archival topples Mike Rama, Raymond Garcia in Cebu City

He credited the idea to Vice Mayor-elect Tomas Osmeña, who has returned to city leadership alongside Archival after years of political rivalry with the outgoing administration.

The initiative was further detailed in a Facebook post by Osmeña on May 16, where he revealed that he and Archival met with leaders of Cebu’s business process outsourcing (BPO) and business process management (BPM) sectors to discuss strategies under the “Mayor of the Night” framework.

“45 days until Day 1. Nestor and I [are] meeting the leaders of Cebu’s BPO/BPM industry,” Osmeña wrote.

“Discussing the implementation of safe public transportation, tailored college degrees with guaranteed employment, and a schedule conducive to working students, a one-stop shop in IT Park, and other issues under the Mayor of the Night initiative,” he added.

READ: Election 2025: BOPK dominates Cebu City polls

Osmeña emphasized the economic impact and growth potential of the BPO industry in Cebu, citing that it brings in around P4 billion monthly in salaries alone. He also mentioned that they offer wages higher than average across other sectors.

“The BPO industry is unique in that it is the one business where there are more job openings than there are qualified applicants,” he said.

“Your local government aims to make this potential a reality. We will do it by making life easier for everyone involved: the employees, the aspiring employees, the companies, the clients, the property owners—every part of the ecosystem will be addressed,” he added.

Osmeña stressed that the administration’s focus is not on giving aid, but on providing sustainable, gainful employment.

“The ability to help a person become self-sufficient, not ayuda, is what lets that person live a better life,” he added.

Archival, for his part, reiterated that his leadership will be grounded in public needs rather than personal or political interests.

“The leadership I envision is one that follows the norms and aspirations of the people… We start from what the people think is good, not just what I want,” he said.

He also described his dynamic with Osmeña as one of clear synergy.

“Tommy creates the vision, and I’ll execute the actions. We are working in the same direction… We’ll even assign executive functions to councilors. We expect them to work like mayors, too. It’s a collaborative government,” Archival said.

Among his first priorities, Archival said, will be uniting the City Council. With his extensive experience as a long-time city councilor, he said he is confident in navigating the internal dynamics of the legislative body.

“I’ve been on the council for years. Most of the members aren’t new,” he said. “My first goal is to harmonize the council because all laws and the budget go through them. I will reach out. If they don’t agree, we’ll still move forward with what we have.”

Archival won the mayoral race in Cebu City, ending the term of incumbent Mayor Raymond Alvin Garcia and surpassing former mayor Michael Rama.

According to the final official results, Archival received 256,197 votes. Garcia came in second with 176,967 votes, while Rama placed third with 120,124 votes.

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) reported a voter turnout of 84.52 percent, with all 790 clustered precincts in the city fully counted. /clorenciana