More money needed for seniors aid

CEBU, Philippines —  Until a supplemental budget is passed, over 75,000 senior citizens registered in Cebu City will have to wait for a while before they can receive financial assistance from the city again as the budget for the year was already depleted last month.

 Of the P8.1 billion Annual Budget for 2019, the city allocated only P455 million for senior citizens. So far, the city has given out P6,000 each to the 75,000 senior citizens. This amount is half of what each senior citizen receives a year.

Mayor Edgardo Labella directed the Local Finance Committee to propose a supplemental budget for the remaining amount needed.

“I have already directed the finance committee, the finance group, to start the preparation for the supplemental budget,” Labella told The FREEMAN.

Labella said the city will also look into the newly-approved amendment to a city ordinance, which aims to cover in the financial aid senior citizens who registered in the city from 2011 to 2013, and not just those who registered in 2010.

This would mean the city will have to allocate a bigger budget for the aid to cover up to 15,000 additional senior citizens.

Next year, the city would need at least P1 billion alone for 85,000 senior citizens.

Labella said the city has enough funds and will use the money the city got from the sale of 45.5 hectares of lot at the South Road Properties in 2015 during the time of former mayor Michael Rama.

During that time, a consortium of Ayala Land, Cebu Holdings Inc. and SM Prime Holdings bought 26.3 hectares at P10.009 billion while Filinvest Land Inc. bought 19.2 hectares at P6.7 billion.

All in all, the city sold 45.5 hectares at P16.7 billion for which the buyers made a 50 percent down payment at P8.35 billion.

In 2016, the city got P3 billion as first installment but former mayor Tomas Osmeña who had just won the mayorship ordered to freeze the money because he wanted to rescind the contract of sale.

The Court of Appeals ruled, however, that the sale was legal and valid.

With no legal impediment, Labella said the city can accept the remainder of the down payment.

Aside from the funds for senior citizens, Labella said he will also pursue the items he raised during his inaugural address at the City Council. There, he urged councilors to pass a supplemental budget that will fund efforts to address the problem of flooding, traffic, garbage, peace and order, education, and ease of doing business.

Labella would also want the city to pay the outstanding balance in the loan incurred to reclaim the SRP, and to complete the construction of the Cebu City Medical Center and Phase 2 of the Carbon Market. –  JMO (FREEMAN)