ILIGAN SP PASSES 2014 BUDGET
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| Marzo |
ILIGAN CITY (Nov. 24) – The Sangguniang Panlungsod (SP) on record time passed the Annual Appropriations Ordinance for Fiscal Year 2014 during its regular session last Tuesday.
According to a source in the SP, the body voted 10-3 for the passage of the said ordinance.
It was said, however, that those who voted “No” probably disagreed with the majority decision to pass a budget widely different from the proposed Executive Budget submitted by the City Mayor.
The version passed by the SP drastically cut the appropriations for Intelligence and Confidential Funds of the Mayor’s Office.
It was gathered that the SP majority decided to cut the said item because they proposal did not include a Peace and Order Council Plan and that it saw no record that a meeting of the Peace and Order Council was held to discuss a security plan.
Moreover, it was said that the provisions for Intelligence, Confidential and Peace and Order Fund was not supported by an Exemption to the general rule from the Department of Interior and Local Government and the Commission on Audit.
The version passed by the SP also carried provisions for items that reportedly had zero in the original executive proposal.
Among the items particularly mentioned were provisions for salaries and wages of casual workers assigned in the CSU.
It was also reported that the SP increased to around P6.7 Million the allocation for barangay assistance that was only P44 thousand in the proposed budget.
Further it was reported that the SP provided funds for the honorarium of Lupong Tagapamayapa members and Purok Presidents.
There were some other items where the SP version differed greatly from that of the proposed Executive Budget.
It was said that according to the law and budgeting guidelines, the SP may reduce but it cannot increase the budget proposed by the Chief Executive.
Observers fear that the Annual Appropriations Ordinance passed by the SP might be vetoed by the Mayor. FRANK E. DOSDOS/RANAO STAR
