Baguio City establishments without biz permits closed

Magalong warns erring businessmen 

By Gaby Keith and Dexter A. See

BAGUIO CITY – The crackdown on erring establishments operating without any business permit in the Summer Capital is on.

The City Mayor Office’s permits and licensing division led by Allan Abayao, police and public order and safety division representatives, swooped down on 23 local establishments at the Maharlika Livelihood Center Tuesday afternoon and presented them with closure orders for operating without business permits.

However, three of the business establishments have already ceased operations when the team delivered the orders at the Center.

Most establishments given closure orders were videoke bars, billiard halls and the like. 

Abayao warned the owners to stop their operations until they can acquire the necessary government permits and other requirements to do so.

He said the establishments were ordered closed not only for failing to possess business permits but also violating local tax ordinance 2000-001 that strictly prohibits serving or selling intoxicating liquor in any stall, booth or store within the market compound including at the Maharlika Livelihood Center, Lower Kayang and Hilltop Market area.

Abayao said more than 230 closure orders are still awaiting the signature of Mayor Benjamin Magalong before these will be served by his office to the intended parties.

Magalong issued a stern warning against erring businessmen in the city that he will not hesitate to close the operation of their establishments if they continue to violate existing ordinances and refuse to secure their permits to operate.

He said he personally closed the operation of an establishment along Upper Session road that refused to adhere to the previous closure orders that were issued against the owner which prompted him to be the one to talk to the owners and padlock the establishment.

“We will continue our aggressive campaign against businessmen who refuse to comply with the prescribed rules and regulations. If they want political will, I have a lot of that,” Magalong said.

He said the local government will launch an all-out campaign against businesses without the necessary permits which will start along Marcos highway anytime considering the numerous reports that reached him that there are still many establishments that continue to operate without permits.

According to him, there is even an owner of a establishment who did not secure permit to operate a business for a period of at least 20 years and that he was even so proud to tell the violation that he had committed that is why there is a need to intensify the local government’s campaign against establishments that do not have permits.

Magalong called on individuals and corporations doing business in the city to secure the required permits from the local government and not to wait for the personnel of the Permits and Licensing Division to issue them the necessary notices of violation before adhering to the prescribed policies and guidelines for their business operations.

Magalong solicited the cooperation of barangay officials in the said campaign because they know the businesses in their areas of jurisdiction that do not have permits and for them to remind the owners to secure permits to justify their continuous operations and for them not to wait for the local government to aggressively act on the matter before securing their required permits to operate.

He explained that with the putting in place of the electronic business permits and licensing system, the process in securing permits have been significantly reduced, thus, businessmen who renew their permits can easily get the same while those who apply for new business permits can also easily be issued the required permits.

Earlier, the local government adopted a schedule for the processing of business permits to lessen the long lines of people transacting business with the different permit-issuing offices wherein individuals and corporations having business that start with the letters A to H will process their permits from January 1 to 31; those whose business names start with the letters I to P will process their permits from February 1 to 28 while those whose business names start with the letters Q to Z will process their business permits from March 1 to 20 annually.

The local government also established a one-stop shop where owners of businesses could transact their desired business for the renewal or application of new business permits for their existing establishments.