Dagupan City proposes P581M budget
DAGUPAN Mayor Benjamin Lim has submitted a 2012 budget proposal of P581 million for review and approval by the Sangguniang Panlungsod (SP).
The annual budget was transmitted to the SP through Vice-Mayor Belen Fernandez, chair of the council, on October 5.
The proposed 2012 budget is 2.2% higher than the proposal submitted last year. However, the sanggunian initially approved only P487 million or a P81 million cut. Subsequent supplemental budgets were approved only upon submission of legal justification by the concerned department heads.
The proposed budget provides for 40 percent allotment for the general public services sector, 29 percent for the social services sector, 25 percent for economic services sector, and six percent for other services.
Expenditures for capital outlays amount to P68 million or 11.73 percent of the total expenditures. It includes provisions for development projects to be initiated and realized in 2012.
The budget also includes a P3.1 million fund from the 20 percent of the Internal Revenue Allotment (IRA) for development projects.
“Next year, the city’s IRA will likely suffer a large diminution, however, the City Treasurer’s Office and the Financial Management Committee will jointly generate strategies and efforts not only to increase collection, but also to regain the first class status of the city,” said Lim.
“From a high revenue share of around 70 to 75 percent a few years ago, we have broken the 50 percent barrier, which is the result of our solid determination to gradually break free from our heavy reliance on the IRA share for our budget,” he added.
The city also apportioned P42 million for the payment of amortization on the remaining balance of the city’s existing loan with the Land Bank of the Philippines of P161.5 million.
The total expenditures for personal services for the next budget year is P211 million, which accounts for 36.38 percent of the total budget.
Amounts of P29,050,000.00 and P3,131,000.00 were allocated as reserve for calamity and aid to barangays, respectively.
GAG ORDER
City hall observers are not optimistic that next year’s budget will be approved en toto in the light of the gag order of the mayor preventing department heads to attend committee hearings and meetings of the sanggunian.
The drastic cut in the budget was largely a result of the failure of the department heads to explain and defend their submitted budgets owing to their absence in the sanggunian during budget deliberations as directed by the mayor’s gag order. (With report from CIO)
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