Police to tap City Legal Office for erring vendors’ arrest

Police Lieutenant Colonel Ariel Pico (Photo by Merlinda A. Pedrosa)
Police Lieutenant Colonel Ariel Pico (Photo by Merlinda A. Pedrosa)

THE Bacolod City Police Office (BCPO) will coordinate with the City Legal Office (CLO) to harmonize the apprehension of the erring vendors at the downtown area.

Police Lieutenant Colonel Ariel Pico, spokesperson of BCPO, said Tuesday, December 17, that they already tasked Major Jovil Sedel chief of Police Station 1, to coordinate with the CLO at the Bacolod Government Center.

“We need the support of the CLO to remove again the vendors who are selling at the downtown area because they are not criminal elements. We want to avoid the issue of harassment because there will be confiscation of items,” he said.

He added the police also need the support of the market committee to disallow the vendors to return at the downtown area.

Hundreds of vendors at the downtown area were earlier demolished in pursuant to Memorandum Circular No. 2019-121 dated July 29, 2019 of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) directing the local government officials, from the mayors down to barangay captains, to implement the clearing of roads.

The displaced vendors were transferred to the Bacolod Vendors Plaza near the Manokan Country.

It has been observed that since last week, several vendors returned at the downtown area.

Mayor Evelio Leonardia earlier urged the BCPO to arrest the erring sidewalk vendors who insisted to go back at the downtown area.

Leonardia said that after the demolition of the illegal structures at the downtown area, they have an arrangement with the BCPO that the latter will be in charged to arrest the erring vendors.

“This is the DILG circular and the police is part of the DILG so the set up supposedly, by this time is it’s the job of the police to monitor them in the area,” he said.

Leonardia pointed out that the city government did not allow the vendors to go back to the downtown area.

Pico said this issue will be discussed with Colonel Henry Binas, director of BCPO, to address this problem.

He said the Mobile Patrol Group (MPG) along with the Bacolod City Mobile Force Company will augment with the Police Station 1 to monitor the downtown area.

He added the city government already established the “Paskwa sa Plaza” at the Bacolod public plaza and its surrounding parking areas for the duration of the Christmas season from December 3 to January 6, 2020.

Pico disclosed the vendors should coordinate with the city government so they can display at the public plaza, and they should follow the law to avoid sanction and penalties.

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