Celso starts consultations on ’09 budget
Marathon hearings for the 2009 Executive Budget commenced yesterday with the end in view of finalizing the proposal for submission to the City Council in due time.
Mayor Celso Lobregat presided over the hearing together with the his Finance Committee concentrating on the requirements for maintenance and other operating expenses (MOOE) of the different national high schools located in the city.
Public schools, though they are under the Department of Education (DEPED), get assistance from the city government.
The mayor individually interviewed national high school principals and administrators on their requirements for possible inclusion in the proposed budget for next year.
The city government, he stressed, has the Special Education Fund (SEF) which is used to assist the DEPED in their programs specially hiring of Local School Board teachers, participation in division, regional and national meets and school building projects.
“We assist the national high schools in terms of MOOE and the school building project because we consider education as part of our priority projects,” the mayor declared.
In the coming days, technical budget hearing will continue and focus of the discussion will be the proposed budgets for the Vocational Technical Schools, some city departments, the Regional Trial Court and Municipal Trial Court branches, Shari’a District Court and Office of the City Prosecutor.
The venue of the hearing is the City Hall conference room.
The budget hearing in the next few days will focus on the proposals of various city offices, office of the City Secretary, the City Council, the City Health office and the locally subsidized hospitals and the office of the city administrator that includes the four economic enterprises.
The proposed budgets for the different barangays will also be heard in the coming weeks with the Financial Committee holding hearings in the different barangays. (Sheila Covarrubias)