THE Bacolod City Police Office (BCPO) warned the erring vendors at the downtown area to vacate the area or else they will be arrested starting Friday, December 20.
Police Colonel Henry Binas, director of BCPO, said Thursday that it’s part of their job to sustain the clearing operations at the downtown area.
He said the police will monitor the area and they will advise the vendors to join the “Paskwa sa Plaza” at the Bacolod public plaza which was earlier established by the City Government for them to display their products for the duration of the Christmas season from December 3 to January 6, 2020.
“It’s our role to sustain and maintain the clearing of sidewalk area and we are always ready to clear the sidewalk,” he added.
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, but 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 charge of arresting the violators.
“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 added that the City Government did not allow the vendors to go back to the downtown area.
Binas said the vendors were only given a chance to display at the public plaza this Christmas season, and not at the downtown area.
“In the spirit of Christmas we will be lenient, but after the Christmas we will strictly enforce the law and there will be a confiscation of the items. For now, we will encourage them to transfer at the public plaza, but if they will not listen to us we will arrest them,” he said.
The operations will be led by the station commanders including the Bacolod Traffic Authority Office and the Mobile Patrol Group to enforce the law.
Binas will also hold a meeting with the City Legal Office today to discuss the apprehension of the erring vendors at the downtown area.
He urged the vendors to follow the law to avoid sanction and penalties.