Edgardo Labella Assumes as Acting Mayor as Osmena Goes on Vacation to Japan

Cebu City Vice Mayor Edgardo Labella on Wednesday assumed as the city’s acting mayor after Mayor Tomas Osmena and his family left Cebu Tuesday for a vacation in Japan.

Labella will sit as acting mayor until Osmena’s return on Jan. 2.

But Osmena left Labella an instruction not to touch the PHP7.2 billion 2017 annual budget for the city which the Cebu City Council recently passed but still needs the mayor’s approval.

Labella assured he will not be approving the annual budget the council passed last week.

In a letter dated Dec. 23, Osmeña asked Labella to make sure that no action be done on the General Funds and Special Account Appropriations Ordinance enacted last Dec. 20 while he is on leave.

Osmena said his temporary absence will only be for six days and he has 10 days from receipt of the transmitted enacted appropriation ordinance to review and act on the matter.

“It would be prudent that the submission thereof be made upon my return to office. This is also to avoid the situation that the one who enacted the ordinance would still be the one approving. It would be a situation frowned upon by law,” reads a portion of the letter.

Labella was the presiding officer during the regular session at the time the council approved the appropriation ordinance. (PNA)LAP/EB/EBP