BAGUIO CITY – Mayor Mauricio Domogan last week designated a former city police chief and a recently retired city treasurer as consultants of the city government on peace and order and financial resource management, respectively.

In Administrative Order No. 95, the mayor appointed Retired Police Chief Supt. Villamor Bumanglag as adviser on "peace and order, traffic and transport management and related police and security concerns of the city considering his expertise and wide range of management skill... by virtue of his track record while in government service.

Bumanglag will review existing policies and mechanisms in place and recommend amendments, coordinate with concerned executive departments, attend meetings of related technical committees as adviser and resource persons and regularly update the city mayor on developments on the said concerns.

In Administrative Order No. 94, the mayor also designated former city treasurer Thelma Manaois as consultant on financial resource management including financial policy reforms "owing to her acumen of financial management skills that resulted to the city's sound financial standing."

As such, Manaois will mentor key personnel of the Office of the City Treasurer on financial systems and treasury operations, attend meetings of various financial committees as an external adviser and regularly update the city mayor on improvements and recommend appropriate policy and relevant measures.

Both consultants will extend such services for free, according to the mayor.

In Bumanglag's case, the mayor said the existing local government structure does not provide appropriate staffing for peace and security and traffic concerns due to resource constraints thus the city needed to "outsource expert consultant to assist the city" on said concerns.

For Manaois, he said her continued expert advice is needed to provide guidance in the implementation of the remaining activities she initiated herself and to allow for the smooth transition of activities in the pipeline including enhancing the capabilities of the employees through her mentoring.

Manaois retired from government service just last July 23 after almost 40 years of service where she steered the city treasury department to a better performance.

When she assumed in 1999, the city's annual budget was P425 million and this consistently increased to P1.168 billion through her "proper direction and guidance coupled by the unrelenting work attitudes of my staff (that) helped me make a big turnaround in the city treasury service elevating its performance to greater heights, a place where it rightfully belongs."

The mayor who literally sang Manaois' praises through a poetic farewell speech during the retirement program has since called for the sustenance of Manaois' fiscal policies to maintain the office performance.

"Our consolidated words of gratitude cannot fully compensate (for) the invaluable service that you have rendered the people of Baguio over the past four decades, thus, we are happy that you will be able to enjoy private life and sad at the same time because we will be missing a cheerful, dynamic and compassionate leader," the mayor wrote Manaois. – A Refuerzo