Council of four to tackle P6B budget with ‘caution’

Acting Vice Mayor Leah Japson (back to camera) and three other councilors discuss how to proceed with the budget deliberations. (CDN PHOTO/TONEE DESPOJO)

WITH only four officials sitting in session, the Cebu City Council will review and deliberate “with caution” the P6 billion budget submitted by Acting City Mayor Margot Osmeña on June 20.

Cebu City Councilor James Anthony Cuenco, who assumed the chairmanship of the budget and finance committee vacated by Osmeña, voiced doubts on whether she has the authority to submit the budget.

As acting mayor, Cuenco said Osmeña only has a “caretaker capacity.”

“But it is just a manifestation. (The proposed annual budget) is already in our hands,” Cuenco said.

He said he doesn’t have any reason to object and be an obstructionist to the proposed annual budget.

“It’s an absurd situation (what we are in). What if it so happened I was the acting mayor and I belong to Team Rama, then I submitted a proposed budget to be deliberated by Team Rama members, then the incoming mayor will act on the budget. It will be absurd, di ba?” he said.

But Cuenco said the council will no longer ask the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) if they can approve the P6 billion budget since it will take time.

Cuenco said he was hesitant to accept the chairmanship of the budget and finance committee since he is not an expert on dealing with the budget.

“Acting Vice Mayor Lea Japson also spoke about her apprehension on leading the committee while presiding over the council. She convinced me by saying that they will do anything to help me, that they will provide the staff and the expertise to review the budget,” he said.

Japson is the vice chairperson of the budget and finance committee. Japson said she is still positive that the council can approve this year’s budget.

“If the council will conduct budget hearing let’s say every day, we can do away with some items like the financial assistance for the barangay since we cannot use it. It’s more or less the same items,” she said.