3 weeks ago
23
THE city council has approved a P35,000 Charter Day bonus for each regular and casual employee of city hall, increasing it by P10,000 from the P25,000 initially proposed by Mayor Raymond Alvin Garcia.
During its regular session on Feb. 12, councilors deliberated on the possibility of granting a higher incentive.
Councilor Noel Wenceslao, chairman of the finance committee, raised the question of whether the council had the authority to approve an amount beyond the mayor's proposal.
Councilor Jocelyn Pesquera pointed to a resolution from the Program on Awards and Incentives for Service Excellence, which did not specify a cap but recommended that the bonus be "at least P25,000."
She noted that the council had the flexibility to increase it further, suggesting amounts as high as P35,000, P40,000 or even P50,000.
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Councilor Phillip Zafra then proposed raising the bonus to P35,000, emphasizing that there was a basis for the increase. The motion was approved without objections.
City hall currently has 1,300 regular employees and 2,900 casual workers. The approved bonus will not apply to job order personnel, who will receive P5,000 each.
Earlier, Garcia had requested an additional P635 million budget from the city council, allocating P150 million for Charter Day bonuses, P140 million for road asphalting, P210 million for the construction of the eighth to 10th floors of the Cebu City Medical Center, P35 million for city hall's maintenance and operating expenses, and P100 million for livelihood programs.
The Charter Day celebration on Feb. 24 marks Cebu City's 88th founding anniversary, commemorating its establishment as a chartered city through Commonwealth Act 58, authored by Vicente Rama.
The occasion is a special nonworking holiday in the city.
