DAVAO CITY (MindaNews / 24 March) – Vendors of Agdao Public Market here are asking the city government to merge the Variety and Vegetable Sections into one section claiming they have difficulties in getting customers because of their location.
In a letter addressed to Mayor Sebastian Duterte, the City Administrator’s Office, the City Economic Enterprise (CEE) and the City Council’s Committee on Government Enterprises and Privatization, Ligaya Uba, president of the Agdao Public Market Dry Goods Section said they are renting stalls at P4,700 to P5,000 a month, but some vendors could only earn 50 pesos a day because of their location.
The Variety or Groceries section is located on the second floor of the market’s new building, far from the vegetables section on the ground floor at the other building currently undergoing renovation. Buyers will have to go to the next building to buy vegetables. Because of this, vendors in the groceries section are “forced to sell vegetables to earn profit.”
“Such acts by the said vendors earned them several notices of violation from the City Economic Enterprise due to violation of market sectioning as provided under Article 11, Section 340 of Ordinance No. 0291-17 or the 2017 Davao City Revenue Code,” committee chair Councilor Edgar P. Ibuyan Jr. said during the council’s session last Friday.
Section 340 states that no vendor should be “allowed to sell, display, or offer goods or services that are not included… where his or her stall or space belongs.”
Uba told reporters at the sideline of the City Council’s session that they hope the Council passes a resolution that would stop the issuance of notices of violation because it “demoralizes the vendors.”
During the City Council’s Committee Report about the vendors’ concerns on March 11, CEE Market Supervisor Gerardo Antonio Castillo said they are mandated to issue notices of violations to the vendors.
Castillo cited Article 11, Section 364 of the 2017 Davao City Revenue Code, prohibiting peddlers or hawkers in public markets and their surroundings within a radius of 200 meters where goods are sold or exposed for sale in the stalls or booths.
Vendors are to be fined 200 pesos per violation but after two counts, their stalls will be closed.
Castillo also said the new building of the Agdao Public Market has Fish, Meat, Dry Goods, Variety or Groceries, and Cold Storage Sections; while the old or the neighboring building has Vegetable and Fruit, Rice, Corn and other Cereals, and Food Court/Eatery Sections.
“A resolution asking CEE to temporarily allow the vendors from the Variety or Groceries Section to sell goods under the Vegetable and Fruit Section and vice versa would suffice to address this issue,” Ibuyan said.
Uba said she hopes the City Council will allow the merger of the sections as soon as possible because the CEE allowed the vendors in the Variety section to sell vegetables only until April 1. Beyond that date, notices of violation will again be issued.
The new Agdao Public Market currently has 157 stalls and 45 open stalls. The P850 million renovation of the market was stopped on its third phase due to lack of funds.”
Castillo said the city is currently looking for additional funds to continue the project. (Ian Carl Espinosa/MindaNews)
