LINGAYEN, Pangasinan, Feb. 19 (PNA) — The joint celebration of town fiesta and Bagoong Festival of this capital town this year has resulted in an overdraft of P598,286.51.
This was contained in the financial report presented by Municipal Accountant Nelson Gumapos before the Sangguniang Bayan (SB) during its regular session Tuesday.
The over half a million-peso overdraft was said to have resulted from expenses of P2,401,080 when fund available was only P1,821,793.50.
“It was sources of funds that faltered…we spent more ” said Councilor Judy Ann Vargas, author of the resolution designating bagoong (fish sauce) as the “one town, one product” (OTOP) of Lingayen.
As previously reported, Vargas said the allocation for the Bagoong Festival alone is P500,000 but the town fiesta has no specific budget.
The financial report enumerated that the event’s sources of funds were the net proceeds from raffle tickets (P403,693.50); box collections (P16,300); collections from souvenir programs’ advertisements (P292,800); cash donations (P33,000); Bagoong products exhibit booth (P76,000); and public affairs fund (P1,000,000).
However, Gumapos could not determine where the overdraft amount was sourced out.
Vargas said that they would try to find out where such amount came from as the board invited Gumapos along with two other chairmen of the events’ main committees – former councilor and now Municipal Civil Registrar Jojo Lopez and Human Resources Management Officer Raul Ungson – as well as Municipal Administrator Lydia Pioquinto in their next session to shed light on the matter.
Noticeably, the sources of funds did not include the collection from the supposedly rental fees of the booths which joined the trade fair.
The three chairmen of the festival also stressed that the time for preparations for the events was insufficient, which perhaps contributed to the overdraft.
The town’s joint celebration started December 7, 2013 and lasted until January 15, 2014, with Mayor Josefina Castaneda as the executive chairman. (PNA)