BY GLENDA SOLOGASTOA
ILOILO City – The city government, having amended its terms of reference for the revitalization of the Iloilo Central Market, will hold another public hearing with market vendors at city hall today.
The terms of reference had been crafted to protect and stabilize the vendors there, said Councilor Rodel Fullon Agado, chairman of the Committee on Public Markets and Slaughterhouse.
“We assure them that there will be no changes in their stall locations and fees,” said Agado in an interview over DyFM Bombo Radyo Iloilo. “The investor will not dictate the market vendors.”
SM Prime Holdings is reputedly the investor interested in taking over the management of the central market from the city government.
However, Agado clarified that the city government would prioritize the legitimate market vendors, referring to paying stall holders.
“There is an ongoing adjudication and evaluation to determine who are the legitimate vendors at the central market,” Agado said.
The technical working group is composed of his committee, the City Administrator, the City Legal Office, and former councilor Perla Zulueta.
They had worked on the amendments of the terms of reference over the weekend.
“Those hard-to-understand terminologies were simplified. Maski manugputos sang oling makaintindi,” Agado assured.
The amended terms of reference, once finalized, will be endorsed to the city mayor who, in turn, will endorse it to the city council after the public hearing.
The second batch of public hearing aims to give the vendors another chance to express their sentiments.
“As much as possible, the mayor wants a series of meetings with the market vendors so they will be enlightened,” the city councilor added.
The councilor said a bidding for investor would eventually be called for, assuming that SM is not the only interested party./PN
