An executive-legislative caucus was held by the Bacolod City officials yesterday at Business Inn in Bacolod City to clarify questions concerning the P1.12 billion Executive Budget for 2010, Bacolod Vice Mayor Jude Thaddeus Sayson said yesterday.

The proposed annual budget for next year shows an increase of P120 million from last year's budget of P1 billion.

Sayson said they held the caucus to thresh out matters with the Committee on Finance chaired by Councilor Al Victor Espino.

“Based on the result of the caucus, I believe the members of the Sangguniang Panlungsod were clarified on the new ways of presenting the annual budget,” he said.

Sayson said new budget circulars have been issued that provide new account titles under the New Government Accounting System as mandated by the Commission on Audit.

These are the things that the members of the SP wanted clarified, he said, and after the caucus, they hope that the 2010 annual budget will be passed today, or on their last session on Dec. 29.

Sayson said the budget for personal services has not been reduced, contrary to what others believe. It is just a matter of how it was presented in the regular budget, he said.

Meanwhile, Sayson said they were not trying to hide anything nor were they up to something when they held the caucus exclusively among themselves.

The meeting is called an executive-legislative caucus since it is supposed to be attended by the members of the executive and legislative branches of government, he said.

Whatever they have discussed yesterday will all appear in the committee report, he added.

Sayson said that since their political opponents are aspiring for the positions they are now holding, “For them, anything that we do is wrong.”

“They will never admit that we are doing the right thing,” he added.

Meanwhile, City Administrator Roger Balo said the city has already completed the repair of the roof of the Central Market and will start rehabilitating its fish section.

The enforcement team of the city will see to it that the activity of the market and sidewalk vendors around the markets will remain orderly and will not disturb the flow of traffic, he said.

Balo said they will probably transfer the fish vendors along Bonifacio Street to the Central Market. *CGS

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