THE release of the P35,000 Charter Day bonus for regular and casual employees of Cebu City Hall remains uncertain as the Commission on Elections (Comelec) has yet to respond to the city government’s request for exemption from the election spending ban.

Mayor Raymond Alvin Garcia confirmed during the flag-raising ceremony on Monday, April 7, that the city has not received any feedback from the Comelec, nearly a week after submitting its formal petition.

“I have not-so-good news. As you know, we already submitted a letter seeking exemption for the release of your P35,000 bonus. But as of last week, there has been no word from Comelec,” Garcia told City Hall employees.

Garcia said he plans to follow up on the matter this week. If no response is received, he intends to travel to Manila to personally pursue the request.

“We’re hoping to receive, if not an exemption, at least a reply this week,” he added.

In a press conference on Monday, Garcia noted that the bonus is meant purely for employee welfare and should not fall under politically motivated spending.

“I am hopeful that during the election ban, we will be given an execution by the COMELEC because this is like a bonus; it’s like the salary of an employee. This shouldn’t be difficult for them to make a decision,” he said.

The Charter Day bonus was included in the city's Supplemental Budget No. 1 (SB1), which was approved by the City Council on March 26.

The bonus was increased from the original P25,000 to P35,000 per employee following budget realignments.

Funds were sourced by reallocating P88 million initially earmarked for a livelihood program, which was removed due to a lack of clear justification.

However, because the bonus was not part of the city’s annual budget and was instead lodged in the supplemental budget, city finance and accounting offices raised concerns about its release during the election period.

Previously, Garcia admitted that the timing of the SB1 approval contributed to the problem. The City Council passed the measure just two days before the start of the local campaign period on March 28, triggering Comelec’s spending restrictions.

“I promised employees that we would release the bonus in March. But the council only approved it on March 26. Is it my fault it was approved that late? Processing it after that became extremely difficult,” he said.

The Comelec’s election spending ban prohibits the release of public funds for non-essential and non-recurring expenses during the campaign period.

While salaries and operational expenses are generally exempt, bonuses and other one-time incentives are restricted to prevent the misuse of government funds for electoral gain.

Meanwhile, the mayor said that the city had earlier sought an exemption for allocations related to social services and infrastructure, both of which fall under banned categories during the election period.

Under Comelec rules, local government units seeking to release restricted funds during the campaign period must secure prior approval to avoid possible administrative and legal repercussions.(TGP)

• Tags
• #Charter Day Bonus
• #P35,000
• #Commission on Elections
• #Comelec
• #Raymond Alvin Garcia
• #Supplemental Budget