BACOLOD City – The City Council here is pushing for the creation of 30 additional positions for local legislative staff officers to strengthen its legislative operations.
The proposal, authored by Councilor Caesar Distrito, chairperson of the council’s committee on human resource, was approved on first reading last week.
Distrito explained that the measure seeks to enhance the council’s efficiency by providing additional technical support to the vice mayor and councilors. Currently, each city councilor has only three technical staff, a setup that has remained unchanged for the past 30 years.
“Given the increasing demands, complexity, and volume of our legislative work, it is necessary to provide additional staff to help us serve the people of Bacolod more effectively,” Distrito said.
Under the proposed ordinance, each councilor and the vice mayor will be assigned two additional legislative staff personnel to augment their existing technical assistants. These positions will be considered confidential and will remain co-terminus with the term of the elected officials they serve.
Funding for the newly created positions will come from the city’s General Fund, to be appropriated annually in the budget.
Distrito stressed that the creation of these plantilla positions will not only support the councilors but will also boost the overall efficiency of legislation, research, and public service delivery.
“This is an investment in better governance. More capable staff means more thorough research, faster action, and more responsive legislation for Bacolodnons,” he added./PN
