MORE NEWS, BAGUIO CITY

City vendors warned on building stalls in market
By Aileen P. Refuerzo

BAGUIO CITY – The city government will stick to its own city market restoration plan and will not allow unauthorized improvement by the vendors who have been clamoring to undertake the repair job by themselves.

Acting mayor Daniel Farinas affirmed this last Monday in reaction to reports that the vendors have begun reconstructing their stalls that were burned last March despite the city government’s rejection of their proposal to undertake the repair work by themselves and at their own expense.

Farinas warned that the city will order the demolition of any unauthorized improvements if the vendors will continue to insist on what they want.

He said that after the fire incidents that gutted the vegetable proper building 1 and 2 and sari-sari and tobacco sections and affect 238 stalls, city officials led by Mayor Reinaldo Bautista Jr. decided to pursue the restoration project acknowledging that it is the city government’s responsibility to restore the area.

He said that to make sure that the project is implemented properly and equitably, the plan that was prepared by the city building and architecture office has to be followed.

The restoration project is now being readied for bidding to qualified construction
contractors.

Affected stallholders were questioning the stall allocation plan as the spaces were accordingly reduced and thus will not be commensurate to what they are paying.

But CBAO head Engr. Oscar Flores said space reduction cannot be avoided as the plan was made based on the original area allotted for said sections.

Extensions made by the vendors themselves have been removed thus the area will now be reduced.

Flores however assured that the spaces allotted to the vendors are of equal size and that the number of stalls in the plan corresponds to the number of legitimate vendors affected by the fire thus nobody will be displaced.

Farinas said the plan as prepared will be followed that the schedule of rental payments will later be adjusted to correspond to the spaces rented.

Mayor Bautista earlier assured that the structures to be built will all be temporary or collapsible so these can be easily dismantled should the full-blown market development project be implemented. in deference to the contract with the Uniwide Sales Realty and Resources Corporation (Uniwide) which had been declared binding by the courts.

Pursuant to the mayor’s plan, the city council approved the reallocation of P16.5 million from the Annual Investment Plan for 2008 to finance the restoration project.

Farinas last week created the Market Development Projects Action Group to oversee the improvement projects and tackle the various concerns affecting the city market.


HLURB-CAR normal; new head assumes post

BAGUIO CITY – The confusing operations at the Housing Land Use Regulatory Board (HLURB) in the Cordillera over the past several weeks due to the existence of two lady officials contesting the top post is now back to normal after the new head assumed office recently.

Confusion evolved at the HLURB-CAR office after its central office assigned a new head in the region while a status quo order issued by the Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 3 is considered as in full force and effect.

However, lawyer Aurelio Galacgac, legal counsel of Teresita Galacgac, the new HLURB-CAR regional director, said his client has to assume her new post to prevent her from being charged for insubordination by his superiors in Manila.

According to him, his client’s assumption into office is authorized by appropriate Board Resolutions and orders duly signed by Vice-President Noly de Castro, the country’s housing czar.

Reacting to the pendency of a case questioning the cross-positioning of the HLURB filed by Rebecca Torres, who was reassigned to Region I from the Cordillera, Atty. Galacgac explained they will respect whatever the decision of the court will be in the case but there is a need for them to comply with the lawful orders to prevent the case from being complicated in the future.
Furthermore, he disclosed the HLURB has already transferred his client’s bond from the La Union branch of the Land Bank of the Philippines to its branch in this mountain resort city to ensure the smooth transactions in the said office.

The cross-positioning of HLURB regional officials is obviously in preparation for the upcoming merger of the said offices in Regions I, II and the Cordillera into only one office which will be based in the city.

However, such merger of HLURB offices in the three regions is being strongly opposed by numerous local governments and property development stakeholders in the said regions as it would impede the smooth flow of transactions and delay the upcoming introduction of the housing industry in Northern Luzon.

Galacgac appealed to all parties concerned in the pending case to observe sobriety to prevent the situation from going out of control so that their clients will not be confused and result to a more embarrassing situation for them.

Ms. Galacgac was the former HLURB-CAR regional director before being transferred to the HLURB Region I in San Fernando City, La Union and again reassigned to her old office in the city.

Earlier, Torres petitioned the court to cite in contempt lawyer Romeo Fabol, HLURB chief executive officer, for reportedly issuing orders for Ms. Galacgac to assume her post in the Cordillera and for her to go to Region I since the same is in alleged violation of a status quo issued by the same court sometime in January this year. --Dexter A. See



Three men snatch maid’s cell phone

BAGUIO CITY -- Three suspects of alleged theft were brought to the Police station 7 – SM branch, after taking the 10-thousand worth cellphone of a housemaid.

Victim Jenalyn Olinan, 19, single, of First road, Quezon hill here, with her employer Jairo Jaime, came to the police office and filed complaint.

Investigators said, suspects Marvin Valenson, 26, single, of Lopez Jaena St.; Frederick Agoyos, 23, single, of P. Burgos St. and William Tome, 19, single, of San Carlos Heights, allegedly snatched the victim’s cell phone around 3 p.m.here at the Lower ground floor of SM City.

The victim, later withdrew her complaint, after the three suspects' guardians offered to pay 4,500 pesos t the victim to settle the dispute. -Louis Serran