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Tuesday, August 01, 2006
Speak out: Dignified means of livelihood
By Maria pino-buanghog
Cebu City United Vendors Association
The Cebu City Traffic Operations Management (Citom) may have been misguided or misinformed in its observation and in recommending to Mayor Tomas Osmeña the demolition of sidewalk vendors.
The Cebu City United Vendors Association (CCUVA) condemns the massive demolition of sidewalk vendors in Cebu City streets. The move will not enhance the city for the Association of Southeast Asian Nation (Asean) summit in December. The mayor had already stated that he wants the vendors to be part of the summit and to wear Fi-lipiniana attire.
Demolition of vendors’ stalls on the sidewalk would be contrary to the Asean’s goal to implement poverty reduction programs.
Demolition will worsen poverty conditions that, in turn, will result in social problems, such as crimes, prostitution and insurgency, among others.
The Citom must not pretend to outwit the honorable mayor. He knows that the 13,000 vendors—of which 10,000 are CCUVA members—need regular meals, medicine, vitamins, education for their families and dependents, whose number can run from 30,000 to 50,000 persons. Can the City provide employment to these people?
We in CCUVA send our children to school so they can help the economy of Cebu, but how can we continue to do so if we are deprived of our sources of livelihood.
We did not choose to be sidewalk vendors. Both the government and the private sectors created us to become what we are.
How? The government did not ensure that there are enough jobs for people, and instead created programs that allow layoffs and contractualization.
Having had no chance to work, we became vendors to be able to sustain our needs.
In the countryside where some of us could have found jobs in agriculture and fishery, the government allowed the use of destructive chemicals which damaged the damaged the environment and caused us to abandon our farms.
Vending in the sidewalks is the last recourse of people seeking to survive through dignified means. We become sidewalk vendors because we refuse to make money through criminal means. Through our humble livelihood, we help the Cebu economy move on.
Contrary to accusations that pedestrians walk on the street because of our presence, a number of streets, such as Juana Osmeña, V. Rama, Katipunan, Echavez and Gorordo, to name a few.
If Citom will conduct an honest investigation, it will come to the conclusion that:
1. The number of motor vehicles exceeds the allowable volume that can be accommodated on existing roads. In this case, the rich must lessen their use and number of vehicles and even save fuel. But please do not punish the poor.
2. The outer portion of some narrow streets are used as parking space because there are buildings that do not conform to the building code requirement for parking space in their premises. Thus, in evaluating building permits, the City Government must require that owners allot enough space for parking.
3.Implement economic reforms so that the number of poor people will decline.
The issue here is not only the vendors but the entire system. It is honorable on the mayor’s part to recognize the vendors’ role in the Asean summit. For our part, we stress that we have been a friend of Mayor Osmeña since he became mayor.
But should the mayor be carried away by the ill-advised Citom, a host of problems will be created.
We want our members to help Cebu City. But if we go hungry, can Citom make us think of peace?
For Bisaya stories from Cebu. Click here. (August 1, 2006 issue)
Write letter to the editor.Click here.
Join the Sun.Star message board.Click here. |
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