Mix-up in cash bonuses upsets Capitol workers

Several Capitol employees were overjoyed to get their cash gifts last week.

But errors in the computation of the annual performance evaluation, which was the basis of bonuses amounting to P7,000 to P15,000 each has forced officials to recheck all results.

The problem is that some employees had already spent the bonuses or used it to pay existing loans, said Provincial Budget Officer Eme Gingoyon.

Some employees recevied more than they deserved and some got less than expected.

Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia said she tasked the accounting department to “validate” the performance evaluation results after learning of the errors.

Gingoyon told Cebu Daily News the cash gifts were already released starting last week.

Employees in the five top-performing Capitol departments were to receive cash gifts of P7,000 to P15,000.

The computation errors resulted in another set of outstanding offices who were issued bonuses.

The top five performing deparments and provincial hospitals were announced by Governor Garcia last Aug. 6, during the province’s founding anniversary celebration.

They were legislative offices of PB Member Joven Mondigo (1st); PB Member Peter John Calderon (2nd); Office of former PB member and now Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale (3rd); Provincial Secretary (4th); and the office of PB member Willie Caminero (5th).

A new list of winners has caused some confusino. The list posted in the office of the staff of PB Member Arleigh Sitoy showed that the top five performing offices are those of PB Member Peter John Calderon (1st); Provincial Secretary (2nd); PB Member Sergio Restauro (3rd); PB Member Sun Shimura (4th); and PB Member Joven Mondigo (5th).

Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale said the Provincial Board had proposed to pass another supplemental budget for the bonuses of the new set of winners but this is subject to the approval of the governor.

The PB passed Supplemental Budget No. 2 last week with an amount of P205.6 million.

Out of this, P24.26 million was allotted for the performance cash bonuses.

Garcia said she would wait for results of the investigation before she decides.

“I must decide within the parameters by which existing laws prescribed all our actions,” Garcia said.

PB Member Arleigh Sitoy, in a text message to Cebu Daily News, said a “mathematical error” was indeed committed.

He met with other PB members and Vice Governor Magpale and the Capitol technical working group that evaluated performances, headed by lawyer Manolette Dinsay on Monday.

When sought for clarification on the matter last Wednesday, Dinsay told CDN in a text message that he would still be meeting with the governor.

In 2009, Capitol set a criteria for the basis of the cash incentives to the employees.

Points have been deducted if their employees report late to work and use pass slips to leave the office for personal concerns during work hours.

Departments were also been rated based on the attendance of their employees, their compliance with uniform requirements and the number of hours spent working.

Ratings were based on the following criteria: substantial target accomplishment 60 percent, department critical factors 25 percent and department savings 15 percent.

Department savings cover energy consumption for office equipment and use of materials, among others.   But Magpale said that there might be new criteria for the reevaluation. She mentioned that there was one criterion on “neighborliness” which was missed out.

This criteria, she said, refers to willingness of an employee to go out of his/her way to help a fellow employee.

The other criterion was “documentation” , which includes taking official photos of activities.