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Espinosa demolishes Jaro Plaza stalls ‘ tag=’h3′ style=’blockquote modern-quote’ size=” subheading_active=’subheading_below’ subheading_size=’15’ padding=’10’ color=” custom_font=”]
BY GLENDA SOLOGASTOA
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ILOILO City – Ukay-ukay stalls at Jaro Plaza have been demolished.
Acting Mayor Jose Espinosa III ordered the city government’s Task Force on Anti-Squatting and Illegal Structures (TF Asis) to tear down the stalls a day after discovering that these were illegally tapping electricity from the city government’s power lines.
“We conducted an emergency meeting para tudloan leksyon ang mga tawo nga naga-defy sang what is correct and what is legal,” said Espinosa yesterday.
There would be an investigation to unmask a certain “Ricky” to whom the ukay-ukay operators were paying for their electricity consumption at Jaro Plaza, he added.
Late afternoon on Thursday, Espinosa conducted an ocular inspection at Jaro Plaza.
“Ma-case buildup kita. I have instructed the city administrator nga tan-awon kon…basta ma-comply naton ang mga requirements…bal-an mo kon may kaso na there must be affidavits,” said Espinosa.
The Iloilo City Association of Community Elders (ICACE), Inc. that sought permission from city hall to use Jaro Plaza for their activities relative to the Elderly Filipino Week did not oppose the demolition of ukay-ukay stalls. Its president, Dr. Ronnie Fernandez, was among those who attended yesterday morning’s emergency meeting that Espinosa called.
“Waay ‘ta mahimo kon amo na ang gusto ‘ya…kay damo gid sang nagareklamo siempre,” Fernandez told reporters after the meeting.
He confirmed that as part of their observance of the Elderly Filipino Week, ICACE was raising funds through rentals from ukay-ukay stalls.
Espinosa, however, said, ukay-ukay was not contemplated in the permit issued to ICACE for the use of Jaro Plaza.
Fernandez said he thought their permit covered ukay-ukay because their Sept. 4, 2017 letter to the city government seeking permission to utilize portions of Jaro Plaza for the Elderly Filipino Week stated that ICACE planned to hold an RTW (ready-to-wear) trade and bazaar.
According to the ICACE president, they were charging P2,000 per stall, not P4,000 as claimed by some traders at the plaza.
“Basi kon ang iban nga traders, for example, makuha duha, tatlo ukon lima ka pwesto, tapos ibaligya ‘ya man ‘ya sa iban nga traders,” theorized Fernandez.
He, however, distanced ICACE from the stalls’ illegal electricity connections. He said the stall operators were directly dealing with a certain “Ricky” who was not in any way connected with their association.
Fernandez denied ICACE was making Jaro Plaza a milking cow.
“Naglain gid ya buot ko sa mga media…ang naapektuhan indi lang ako kundi ang mga makaluluoy senior citizens nga naga-expect bulig halin sa amon association,” he said.
Their fund-raising, stressed Fernandez, intended to purchase wheelchairs, walking canes and eyeglasses, among others, for poor elderly members.
“Ang na-indian ko lang ang hambal sang mga media, kapin pa ang mga anchormen nga mga loko-loko, indi sia magsiling nga nagapangwarta kami. Waay pa gani kapang-usisa kon anhon ang kwarta na ‘da,” said Fernandez.
In their letter to the Office of the City Mayor, ICACE sought permission to utilize from Sept. 28 to Oct. 31 the right portion at the back of Jaro Plaza’s covered gym, the area facing the canteen of persons with disabilities, right side of Jaro Plaza fronting the building of the Association of Barangay Councils, and Veterans Memorial Shrine for a garden show and trade fair.
“We will also include pottery, wood crafts, garden ornaments, locally-made home and kitchen accessories and RTWs and bazaar,” the letter further stated.
Part of the permit issued to ICACE read: “We have acknowledged and has no objections to your request to use the back of Jaro Plaza to hold a garden show and trade fair on Sept. 28 to 31.”
The permit was from the Community Environment and Natural Resources Office.
Republic Act 10555, the Iloilo City Tourism and Heritage Law authored by Cong. Jerry Treñas, classifies Jaro Plaza a cultural heritage zone.
On Thursday, Espinosa said unscrupulous persons or groups may be taking advantage of the legitimate activities of senior citizens to make money at Jaro Plaza.
According to the acting mayor, he was told that among the activities of ICACE at Jaro Plaza was the selling of plants and pots “kag kon ano-ano da pero indi ukay-ukay.”
“Pero subong ang nagwa to ukay-ukay…daw indi man na ‘ya pwede,” Espinosa told Panay News. “Gintiniran ko gid to kag ginpangita ang mga senior citizens…ti daw waay. Daw gin usar lang ang ngalan or activity sang senior citizens. Indi na ‘ya pwede.”
Early this week, Councilor Joshua Alim warned against the closure of Jaro and Mandurriao district plazas for income-generating activities.
“Ang mga plaza himuon naman nila bulogasan. Plazas are beyond the commerce of man,” stressed Alim, citing the Local Government Code which prohibits the closure of public plazas except for some occasions but that the closure must not be more than three days.
The Elderly Filipino Week is observed every first week of October by virtue of Proclamation No. 470 signed on Sept. 26, 1994 by then President Fidel Ramos.
According to latest data from the Philippine Statistics Authority, there are more than 3.4 million Filipinos aged 60 years and above as of the 2010 census./PN
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