MEMBERS of the majority in the city council scored the incumbent city administration for not giving premium to security this being an election year on seeing the reduction of allocation for gas and fuel of the Dagupan City Police Station in the proposed annual budget for 2022, from  P2.5 million in 2021to only P1.5 million.

Majority Floor Leader Michael Fernandez said he was taken aback upon seeing that the reduction which puts the local police in a difficult situation having been ordered to conduct patrols 24/7 in order to thwart any pre-election violent incidents in the city.

Fernandez initially thought the reduction of budget for fuel was prompted by lesser number of vehicles but this was corrected by P/Major Allan Abuan. Deputy chief of police for Operations who said only the fuel allocation was reduced.

He said the reduction is causing a logistical problem for P/Lt. Col. Benjie Tremor, chief of police, who has to manage with reduced fuel allocation and cited his situation, using his own vehicle and buying gasoline using his personal funds to visit police border checkpoints and to accomplish other missions.

The report of City Budget Officer Jessa Royupa showed the P3 million fuel allocation for the Dagupan police in 2020 was reduced to P2.5 million in 2021 and again to P1.5 million this year.

Royupa said the lower fuel allocation for the local police is compliant with the belt-tightening policy of the city hall owing to lower revenues because of the pandemic that  caused many establishments to close.

She said the city can always ask for a supplemental budget if warranted by a surplus in the collected revenues.

Defending the reduction of the fuel budget of the DCPS, Royupa said that the PNP is a national agency has its own fund allocation for police stations and appropriations from the city government are meant to augment funds for specific purposes.

Councilor Teresa Coquia said the reduction does not equate with the more than P300 million increase in the proposed 2022 budget of P1.308 billion over last year’s to which Royupa said the increase is intended to cover the costs of devolution of services from the national government.

Councilor Jose Netu Tamayo pointed to the absurdity of Royupa’s proposition saying: “Will the police still wait for the approval of a supplemental budget if they need gasoline to run their vehicles in order to chase trouble makers in this election?

Councilor Luis Samson Jr said SP cannot help the situation because SP can only approve a submitted budget. (Leonardo Micua)

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