Bacolod Council repeals ordinance allowing vendors around Central Public Market

FINALLY, all the sidewalk vendors at the Central Public Market and Masamart in Bonifacio Street, Bacolod City will be transferred soon to the Bacolod Vendors Plaza after the City Council repealed the City Ordinance (CO) No.183, Series of 1980.

The repeal of CO 183 or an Ordinance providing for the disposition of kiosks and stalls constructed around the Central Public Market, Bacolod City was proposed by Councilor Bartolome Orola Sr.

Vice Mayor El Cid Familiaran said yesterday the proposed repeal of the ordinance was unanimously approved on its third and final reading during the regular session on Wednesday.

He said the repealed ordinance will be forwarded to the City Mayor’s Office for the approval of the mayor so the city can start to remove the vendors at the sidewalk of Central Public Markets and Masamart in Bonifacio Street.

On Monday, about 380 sidewalk vendors at the downtown area already transferred to the Vendors Plaza and all of them were given a space inside the Vendors Plaza.

They are from the areas of Araneta Street, Gonzaga, Gatuslao, Luzuriaga, Bonifacio, and Ballesteros streets.

Last month, the City Government demolished illegal structures in three big public markets in Bacolod.

The removal of vendors from sidewalks was done in compliance with President Rodrigo Duterte’s directive to rid public streets of obstructions to facilitate the orderly use of thoroughfares.

Executive Assistant Ernie Pineda, cluster head on markets, earlier said that as soon as the CO 183 will be repealed, they will remove the vendors in the sidewalks and will transfer them to the Vendors Plaza so that it will be fair to everybody./map