Baguio VM: trade fairs in parks, public areas abused

BAGUIO CITY – Vice Mayor Mayor Faustino A. Olowan admitted that the conduct of trade fairs in parks and public places have been abused by organizers and the city government through the years.
    Olowan cited need to amend the trade fair ordinance to stop conduct of trade fairs in parks and public places and prevent further abuse of the trade fair ordinance.
    He claimed organizers can easily skirt around exemptions allowed in the trade fair ordinance where such activities are sponsored by the city government, thus, the grant of the previous requests to conduct trade fairs in the different parks and public places in the different parts of the city.
    The acting local chief executive said  provisions of the city’s trade fair ordinance need to be updated by the City Council and he supports the call to amend the ordinance to provide stringent regulations in conduct of fund-raising activities through trade fairs organized by various associations from different barangays.
    He said city officials understand the outrage of the residents against the continuous conduct of trade fairs in the different parks and public places around the city over the past several months that is why the proposal to amend the trade fair ordinance cropped up among the members of the City Council to ensure that the conduct of such fund-raising events are avoided in parks which he admits is also beyond the commerce of man.
    According to him, it is unfortunate that the city government which is supposed to strictly enforce the provisions of the trade fair ordinance served as a conduit for the same to be abused.
    Thus it is high time for these activities to be stopped or else the situation will go out of control in the future.
Olowan urged residents who have been outraged on the frequent conduct of trade fairs in public places to understand the decisions of the city government since such activities was aimed at helping the city’s marginalized sectors to recover from the heavy impact inflicted by the Covid-19 pandemic to the economic activities of the people.
    Under the city ordinances, trade fairs, tiangges/baratillos are not allowed to be held in the months of January, June, July, August and December.
    The vice mayor also agreed that roads, parks and public places are beyond the commerce of man as an established doctrine.
    However, he argued that there are also circumstances when the city government has to be lenient in enforcing the restrictions in the conduct of trade fairs when these entails the need for people to recover from the negative economic impact of the pandemic. -- Dexter A. See