Cebu City lacks funds for salaries, projects — Mayor-elect Archival

CEBU CITY, Philippines — Cebu City’s incoming administration may face serious financial headwinds, with initial assessments revealing that the city’s available cash assets may not be enough to sustain operations, pay employee salaries, or fund ongoing projects.

This was according to Mayor-elect Nestor Archival Sr. during an interview earlier this week.

Archival, who takes office next month, said that while preliminary data from the transition team had been shared with him, he had yet to receive a full and verified accounting of City Hall’s finances.

Still, based on the figures initially presented, he said the city’s current cash position appeared “insufficient” to cover its basic operational requirements.

“Actually, naa’y mga preliminary nga input, pero gusto nako ma-clear before ta mohatag og klaro nga announcement… [However,] sa akong pagsabot base sa akong nakuha, dili enough sa pag-grant sa entire operation including sa sweldo, hangtod sa mga projects. Murag dili efficient pa,” Archival said.

(Actually, there are preliminary inputs, but I would want that that would be cleared before we can give a clear announcement…[However] from what I understand based from what we got, it is not enough to grant the entire operation including the wages, even in the projects. It seemed that it is not efficient.)

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Archival clarified that his assessment had been based solely on the city’s liquid assets, excluding real estate and other non-cash properties, which he said could not be used immediately to fund pressing needs.

“Wala na nako giapil og unsa ray naa’y cash nga available, kay lisod man na nimong gamiton og ibaligya ang mga assets,” he said.

(I did not include those, what I included was the cash available because that is difficult to use if the assets are sold.)

The incoming mayor said he was awaiting a clearer report by next week but admitted that even at this early stage, concerns over the city’s financial state were already surfacing, especially from suppliers and contractors who had not yet been paid.

“Daghan kaayong nagsige’g adto sa opisina nga mga contractor or supplier nga wala pa sila nabayri. Usa na sa atong kalisdanan in the future, kay basin wala nay tao nga ganahan mopasupply nato,” Archival said.

(There are now many contractors and suppliers, who had not yet been paid, who would often go to our offices)

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He also raised red flags over project funds that had already been partially disbursed but not fully paid.

Archival cited an example where, in a P40-million contract, only P10 million had been released, leaving P30 million unfunded and possibly repurposed elsewhere.

“Nahitabo nga paghuman og award, nangitag pondo. Kanang P30 million nga naa dinha, wala pa nagasto, pero possibilidad nga gigamit na sa laing probable nga funds,” he said.

(What happened was after the award, they looked for funds. That P30 million that is there, it had not been spent, but there’s a possibility that it had been used to fund other probable [projects].)

In his initial review of the city’s budget structure, Archival pointed out that many project allocations were pooled into the general fund, making it harder to track and allocate money for specific contracts like school buildings and other infrastructure.

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He also cited unrecorded or undeclared properties and equipment, including air conditioners, elevators, and other machinery in buildings, that had yet to be assessed and declared for taxation.

These, he said, represented missed opportunities for income generation.

“Naa’y mga machines sa mga companya, institutions, ug apil gani mga balay nga wala’y tax declaration. Kini kinahanglan gyud buhatan og paagi,” Archival said.

(There are machines of a company, institutions, and including houses that have no tax declaration. We should find a way to have these made.)

Asked whether he has given any directives about new contracts during the transition period, Archival said he had requested department heads to be prudent and avoid awarding new projects unless absolutely necessary, given the city’s current cash constraints.

“Naa na koy gamay nga requirements sa mga heads. Kung naay awarding, ato lang i-hangyo nga kabantay ta nga wala tay enough nga funds,” he said. “Kung i-award nato, ang contractor maoy masakripisyo kay dili dayon ta kabayad.”

(I have a few requirements for the heads. If there are awarding, we will just request that we have noticed that we don’t have enough funds. If we award it, the contractor would be the one sacrificing to pay because we cannot pay immediately.)

While he has not issued a formal memorandum, Archival said he would be counting on the cooperation of department heads to prevent the city from entering into obligations it may not be able to honor.

He assured, however, that legitimate contracts entered into during the transition, provided all procedures had been properly followed, would be respected by his incoming administration.

“Of course, basta sakto lang (as long as everything is properly done) everything is being followed,” he said.

As Archival prepares to take office next month, he said he would be focused on gaining a full understanding of the city’s fiscal condition and would be working with assessors to explore ways to improve income collection and asset declaration.

“Lisod man siya kay kung estimation lang sa books, wala pa man sila kahatag nako og final,” he said, when asked whether he had a concrete amount on the city’s remaining assets.

(It would be difficult to estimate the books, they had not yet given to me the final one.)

Still, Archival emphasized that transparency, fiscal discipline, and better revenue management would be top priorities under his administration.

TAGS: Archival, cash assets, Cebu City