BACOLOD City has P23 million collectibles from leases from the occupants of the market stalls and blocks in the three public markets -- Central, Burgos, and Libertad.
City Administrator Dr. Roger Balo said the city is having a hard time collecting these fees from the original awardees or occupants for several years now.
These original awardees of market stalls and blocks pay the city P700 per month and they released it to other parties at P5,000 up to P7,000 per month.
The city is on the final stage of issuing demand letters to original awardees in line with the city’s direction of enhancing the generation of revenues from the three public markets, which are part of the economic enterprise units of the City Government.
Market spaces abandoned by their original occupants will be subjected to a re-bidding so that new applicants can come in, Balo said.
Councilor Caesar Distrito, chairman of the Committee on Markets and Slaughterhouse, is conducting a review of the operation of these public markets.
He earlier proposed a resolution directing the local market committee and the City Administrator’s Office to immediately conduct a review as to the status of ownership of market stalls, and to submit the same to his committee the soonest possible. (Carla N. Cañet)