Errant bars reopen / Coop eyed in dev’t of market

CITY HALL BEAT

Aileen P. Refuerzo

BAGUIO CITY – Fifteen out of the 44 padlocked night spots have reopened after complying with the permit requirement and the other terms stipulated in their joint commitment to Mayor Benjamin Magalong last week.

The undertaking signed and submitted by close to 250 bar owners belonging to the Baguio Association of Bars and Entertainment Society (BABES) last Aug. 23 spelled out their ten-point commitment to comply with the city’s regulations foremost on business permits and to uphold peace and order, decency and protection of the youth and women in their operations.

The mayor told the City Hall Hour-Ugnayan press briefing Tuesday that while he was convinced of the bar owners’ sincerity when they came up with the commitment, they would need to uphold their pledges on a long-term basis of face the ultimate penalty of having their permits revoked.

He said he trusts that they will remain true to their vow to police their own rank and conduct their own regular checking to supplement the monitoring being done by the city, police and the community.

 City permits and licensing officer Allan Abayao said ten establishments reopened after promising to adhere to their approved line of business which is either as restaurant or coffee shop. 

The other five were bars without permit which were allowed to re-operate after securing their business licenses. 

 In their commitment, the bar owners pledged not to allow minors to enter their establishments and not to serve liquor to them, to be vigilant against illegal drugs and abusive behavior against women, to adopt measures to beef up security and to avoid being nuisance, enhance cooperation with the law enforcers and the barangays, to contribute to community causes, to follow ordinances regulating their operations, to secure proper business permits and to pay correct taxes.  

The mayor began the crackdown at the start of his term personally joining the inspections and closure operations to send a message that the city will not tolerate illegal and willful acts by any business establishment.

Some of the closed establishments were operating as bars and serving liquor despite having permits as restaurants or coffee shops while majority were operating without any permit at all.

The mayor also noted various violations like molestation of women, allowing minors in and even serving liquor to them, operating without permit and circumventing their permits.

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The city government is looking into the possibility of a partnership with the existing market cooperative in expediting the market modernization project.

Mayor Magalong told the City Hall Hour-Ugnayan press briefing Tuesday that the city received an offer from the market group for a  possible joint venture on the project and the city is considering the same.

The mayor said the city is now in the process of completing the plan with the help of the private sector and Councilors Mylen Yaranon, Philian Weygan and Joel Alangsab who the mayor said have been actively pursuing the project.

As to the Uniwide Sales Realty and Resources Corporation (USRRC), the city’s co-party in the botched market development deal, the mayor said the city has taken action to assert the termination of the deal based on existing statutes.

He said a letter was sent to Justice Martin Villarama Jr., the court-appointed liquidator in line with the dissolution of the companies belonging to the Uniwide Group of Companies which include the USRRC as per the liquidation order dated Nov. 23, 2017.

In said letter, the mayor asserted the city’s intention to avail of the provisions of Republic Act 10142 or the Financial Rehabilitation and Insolvency Act of 2010 particularly section 113 which stipulate that with the liquidation order, USRRC is deemed dissolved and all contracts entered into by the company are also deemed terminated.

The mayor also informed the liquidator that that it will not agree to any assignment of the market contract to any subsidiary or affiliate of the company.

Earlier Asst. City Legal Officer Melchor Carlos Rabanes suggested that the city consider the Design-Build-Lease agreement with Uniwide “as terminated and/or breached in view of the declaration of the (company) as insolvent, hence, the liquidation of its assets and its eventual termination.”

The mayor then directed the preparation of the conceptual plan and eventually a master development plan that would transform the trading center into a true show window of the city.

The original plan approved under the lease agreement forged in 1995 provides for a six-story building with a total cost of P1.7 billion with Uniwide to operate the upper floors for 30 years  and the city to continue to supervise the first floor where the main market place and legitimate vendors will be housed.

However, the development project was not implemented due to the protracted legal battle involving the legality of the contract and later the dissolution of the Uniwide companies.