Spurious business permits
By PNA and Aileen P.
Refuerzo
BAGUIO
CITY – A total of 37 establishments have been ordered closed by the city
government here for violating national laws and local ordinances, including
"spurious" business permits, an official said Tuesday.
“Their business permit is cafe or
restaurant or coffee shop but they are serving liquor. Some of them do not even
have a business permit,” Mayor Benjamin Magalong told a press conference.
He said establishments have already
been closed for sanitation reasons, violation of business permits, and
operating without business permits.
Since June 30, several
establishments have been ordered to cease operations due to sanitation issues,
operating beyond the permit issued, safety and security issues, and road and
sidewalk encroachment.
The mayor told around 200 business
owners in a meeting recently that those operating beyond the permit issued them
would no longer be tolerated.
Magalong had been going around the
different establishments and checked on their operations and sanitation.
“Some were dishonest. What’s in
their business permit? Restaurant but they are operating as bars. Some even
circumvent it, nagiging pilosopo pa sila saying ang beer naman is not
alcohol, beverage daw 'yun (some are even trying to be smart aleck, reasoning out that beer is not
alcohol but a beverage). Look at the definition of alcohol in the tax code --
beer, wine, distilled spirit,” Magalong said.
Magalong said in a press briefing Aug. 20
bar owners met with him on three occasions to negotiate their reopening.
The mayor said the establishments
belonging to the Baguio Association of Bars and Entertainment Society (BABES)
on Aug. 16 presented him a ten-point commitment to be allowed to re-operate but
that he rejected the same for being “empty and lacking in sincerity.”
“The ball is in their court now so that
they have to prove to me how committed they are to abide by the provisions of
the law and to protecting our children before we decide if they deserve to be
given the chance to reopen their businesses,” the mayor said.
City Permits and Licensing Division under
Chief Allan Abayao said that since the start of the new administration, a total
of 37 bars had been closed as of Aug. 22.
Nine of the establishments were operating
as bars and serving liquor despite having permits as restaurants or coffee
shops while the rest were operating without any permit at all.
The mayor said that in their initial
meeting, he reprimanded and admonished these establishments for various
violations like molestation of women, allowing minors in and even serving
liquor to them, operating without permit and circumventing their permits.
He said these acts will never be
tolerated by his administration.
He challenged those who pressed charges
against the city government to pursue the cases to determine who between them
and the city is in the right.
The City Legal Office said the city has
so far received two suits, first for certiorari, prohibition and mandamus,
declaration of nullity of closure order and prayer for issuance of a status quo
ante order and damages filed by PLP Business Developers Corp. which operated at
the Maharlika Livelihood Center; and second for preliminary injunction with
temporary restraining order filed by Ma. Patricia Thompson, operator of Sgt.
Pepper club which was recently closed for operating as a bar despite having a
permit as a restaurant.
The mayor said business owners promised
to police their own ranks and agreed to a one-strike policy where a single
violation would be borne by all of them.
However, he told them to spell out said
commitments in their manifesto.
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