Baguio gov’t realigns funds to paytrash hauling obligation

By Aileen P. Refuerzo

BAGUIO CITY – The city government can now pay part of its waste hauling and disposal obligation with the signing of an ordinance realigning funds for said purpose.

  

Mayor Mauricio Domogan and Vice Mayor Daniel Farinas last week signed Ordinance No. 49 series of 2012 correcting Ordinance No. 15 approved by the body last May reverting P26.2 million from various fund sources to the General Fund and reappropriating the same for solid waste expenses.

            

City general services officer Romeo Concio said the amount will be used to pay the estimated P16 million arrears with Metro Clark Waste Management Corporation for tipping fee for the use of its sanitary landfill from May to August and the approximately P10 million obligation with the hauler.

            

Concio earlier revealed before the city council that the city’s running accounts for hauling and tipping fee has reached close to P40 million from January to June this year.

Metro Clark also issued a demand letter to the city to settle the arrears but Concio said the firm continued to accept the city’s wastes after they promised to pay the account upon the signing of the ordinance.

Concio said he will also follow up with the city council the request for the allocation of additional funds to complete the P87 million requested amount to cover hauling and tipping services for the whole year.

Farinas deferred the signing of Ordinance No. 15 due to questions on the sources and prioritization of funds.

The city council gave the go signal for the signing of the measure after clarifying the sources of funding and the specific purpose of the amount bolstered by a consenting opinion from the city legal officer and agreement by the heads of the departments affected by the budget realignments.    

The approved outlay totaling P26,220,601.04 consists of P6,620,051.55 culled from the savings of implemented 20 percent Development Fund projects and P19,600,549.49 from the continuing appropriations earmarked for Capital Outlay of the different departments.

  

The said fund was approved “subject to the deduction of the obligation of Pro Tech Machinery Corporation to haul out residual wastes.”