Archival uncovers P2B to P3B deficit on first day as Cebu City Mayor
Hiring freeze, partial renewals begin; 13-year workers eyed for GSIS eligibility retention
FILE: A glimpse at the facade of the Cebu City Hall. | CDN Digital photo
CEBU CITY, Philippines — On his first official day in office on July 1, Mayor Nestor Archival Sr. revealed that the city government was facing a projected budget deficit of P2 billion to P3 billion.
This has prompted him to an immediate hiring freeze and a cautious, phased approach to employee contract renewals.
READ: Cebu City lacks funds for salaries, projects — Mayor-elect Archival
“Daghan kaayong gusto magpa-renew, pero akong giistoryahan tagsa-tagsa nga for the meantime, naa koy gitan-aw nga report nga deficit ta og mga P2 billion to P3 billion karon,” Archival said in an interview on Tuesday, July 1. “Kung ato ni silang tanan i-renew, dili gyud ta kasweldo.”
(Many wanted to have their contracts renewed, but I talked to each of them that for the meantime, I am looking at a report of a deficit of from P2 billion to P3 billion now.)
Archival said his administration will focus on reviewing the city’s financial health this week, with an initial priority on essential services such as solid waste management, health, and daycare operations.
“Until Friday, tan-awon sa nato ang financial health sa syudad. Mao man ni ang gasolina nga maka-padayon ta sa serbisyo,” he added.
(Until Friday, I will be looking at the financial health of the city. This is the gasoline that we can continue to serve.)
READ: Garcia refutes Archival’s low-budget claims, cites P6B revenue
Selective renewals
According to Henry Tomalabcad, head of the Human Resource Development Office (HRDO), the city has renewed around 1,400 casual employees so far, based on the list endorsed by the mayor.
Cebu City Hall has more than 8,500 personnel, including regular, casual, and job order (JO) workers.
For now, renewals are limited to casual employees. JO workers are required to submit project proposals through their department heads, which will be subject to mayoral approval before any contracts are renewed.
READ: Abalos to push for laws that will raise pay of job order, COS workers
Tomalabcad also confirmed that no outside applications or endorsements would be entertained unless routed through the Office of the Mayor.“Ang sabot namo ni Mayor, dili mi mudawat og laing endorsement or application. Kinahanglan gikan gyud sa mayor, ug ang chief of staff ra ang mudala sa mga dokumento diri sa HR,” he said.
(The mayor and I agreed, that we will not accept other endorsements or applications. This should come from the mayor and the chief of staff only, they should be the ones to bring the documents here in HR.)
He also said daily updates would be expected as additional renewals were being processed. The HRDO is hopeful that at least 60 percent of personnel will eventually be retained.
Humanitarian consideration for 13-year workers
Among those being considered for special retention are casual employees, who have served for 13 years, who are just two years short of meeting the 15-year requirement for Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) retirement benefits.
“Gihangyo namo sa mayor nga taga-an sila og humanitarian consideration, aron makakompleto sila og 15 years. Para inig-edad nila ug 60, naa silay pension nga paaboton,” Tomalabcad said.
(I asked the mayor that they would be given humanitarian consideration so that they can complete their 15 years. So that when they reach the age of 60, they would have a pension to look forward to.)
Archival has not yet confirmed approval but has responded positively to the proposal. These employees represent a subset of the city’s workforce who have long served but remained non-regular, despite nearing full retirement eligibility.
Critical workers safe
Tomalabcad assured that critical personnel, such as doctors, nurses, midwives, dentists, and other frontline workers at Cebu City Medical Center and the City Health Department, had not been affected by the hiring freeze.
“Safe ra na sila. Wala hilabti ang critical personnel,” he said.
(They are safe. We did not touch the critical personnel.)
Still no confirmation on ghost employees
Asked if the transition team uncovered any ghost employees in City Hall, Archival said he could not make any conclusive statements yet.
“I cannot say that right now. There might be—but dili ko muingon nga naa, kay wala pa man nahibaw-i,” he said.
(I cannot say that right now. There might be–but we won’t say that there are, because we still don’t know.)
Status quo, but under review
Archival earlier announced that all City Hall employees would remain in place for up to three months as his administration continued to review the city’s finances and human resource structure.
Former Mayor Raymond Alvin Garcia previously estimated around 7,000 workers, including 2,000 regulars, 3,000 casuals, and 2,000 JO workers.
Garcia had urged Archival to consider retaining long-serving employees to preserve institutional knowledge and avoid delays in service delivery caused by a new batch of untrained staff.
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