Archival willing to undergo lifestyle check

Local

CEBU City Mayor Nestor Archival is open to being subjected to a lifestyle check.

Archival on Monday, September 15, welcomed the idea, saying he is prepared to make his records available starting with his Statement of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth (SALN).

“Sure, ang mo handle ana.. Siguro naa man miy SALN unahon siguro nato ang SALN, in fact open raman na. Open ta ana. Ang akong hangyo lang nila is rundown if unsa ilang gusto. Ato ng buhaton. Sure, I am encouraging in fact tanan opisyales sa government. I am willing,”

Archival said.

Archival’s remarks came days after Councilor Sisinio Andales urged the Cebu City Council to institute lifestyle checks on elected and appointed officials, describing it as a safeguard against corruption and a way to rebuild public trust.

“This is not a witch hunt. This is not about politics. This is about restoring trust and confidence of the people in government,” Andales said in a privilege speech during the council’s September 10 session.

He said Cebu City, like many local governments, has not been spared from “pangs of irregularities in the disbursement of public funds,” adding that the clamor for transparency has grown louder from citizens themselves.

“One must remember that public office is a public trust,” he said.

To institutionalize checks, Andales proposed creating a Local Integrity and Lifestyle Audit Task Force composed of the Internal Audit Service Office (IASO), Human Resource and Development Office (HRDO), and City Legal Office (CLO), in coordination with oversight agencies such as the Office of the Ombudsman, the Commission on Audit (COA), and the Civil Service Commission (CSC).

The task force, he said, should examine the SALN of officials under Republic Act 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, and match them against actual assets and expenditures.

“What good is the SALN if it is not scrutinized? If it is not matched against reality? We must ask: do the declared assets reflect the lifestyle of an employee? Are there properties, vehicles, or expenditures that defy logic and salary rules?” Andales asked.

He also suggested opening anonymous tip lines, digital platforms, and community forums to allow citizens to report possible irregularities.

“Let the people be our partners in vigilance,” he added.

The council carried Andales’ motion without objection, directing the Office of the Mayor, through the City Administrator and in coordination with concerned offices, to draft guidelines for the lifestyle check mechanism.

Calls for lifestyle checks in Cebu City also mirror a broader national campaign. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. recently ordered parallel lifestyle audits across the executive branch, starting with the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), following reports of “ghost” and substandard flood control projects worth billions of pesos.

According to the Malacañang, the initiative involves the Office of the Ombudsman, COA, the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), and the Bureau of Customs (BOC).

Lifestyle checks were first launched in 2002 under former president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, later revived during the Duterte administration, but were shelved by the Ombudsman in 2020.

“I am encouraging in fact tanan opisyales sa government,” Archival said. “I am willing.”(TGP)