THE Cebu City Council has approved a P35,000 Charter Day bonus for each regular and casual employee of City Hall, increasing the amount by P10,000 from the P25,000 initially proposed by Mayor Raymond Alvin Garcia.

During its regular session on Wednesday, February 12, the council discussed the possibility of granting a higher incentive.

Councilor Noel Wenceslao, chair of the finance committee, asked whether the body had the authority to approve more than the proposed amount.

Councilor Jocelyn Pesquera cited a resolution from the Program on Awards and Incentives for Service Excellence (PRAISE), which did not set a fixed amount but recommended that the bonus be "at least P25,000."

She noted that the council had the flexibility to increase it further, suggesting amounts as high as P35,000, P40,000, or even P50,000.

Councilor Phillip Zafra then proposed raising the bonus to P35,000, emphasizing that there was a basis for the increase. The motion was approved without objections.

City Hall currently has 1,300 regular employees and 2,900 casual workers. The approved bonus will not apply to job order personnel, who will receive P5,000 each.

Earlier, Garcia had requested an additional P635 million budget from the City Council, allocating P150 million for Charter Day bonuses, P140 million for road asphalting, P210 million for the construction of the eighth to tenth floors of the Cebu City Medical Center, P35 million for City Hall’s maintenance and operating expenses, and P100 million for livelihood programs.

The Charter Day celebration on February 24 marks Cebu City’s 88th founding anniversary, commemorating its establishment as a chartered city through Commonwealth Act 58, authored by Vicente Rama.

The occasion is a special non-working holiday in the city.(MyTVCebu)

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• #Cebu City Council
• #Cebu City Charter Day
• #Charter Day Bonus
• #P35,000
• #Regular Employees
• #Casual Employees
• #Raymond Alvin Garcia