FISH vendors at the Tabunok public market will troop to Talisay City Hall today to air their grievances against their transfer to the market-cum-terminal in the neighboring village of Lagtang.
More than 100 fish vendors are against their transfer, saying the new facility cannot accommodate the more than 300 stall holders at the old public market.
The complaining vendors will reportedly hold a rally in time for the regular session of the City Council at 10 a.m.
But City Hall Public Information Officer Arturo Bas said the vendors could not transfer yet, as the City Government still has to construct an access road at the back of the new market.
The access road will cross the Mananga River, linking the market-cum-terminal to the main road near the Mananga Bridge.
But City Market Administrator Winefredo Bas said the fish vendors have opposed the idea of transferring to the new facility because they are worried about a drop in their sales.
Other vendors were apprehensive that market-goers might no longer go to the new market-cum-terminal in Lagtang because of the presence of the sidewalk vendors, selling vegetables and fruits, and the satellite market in Tabunok.
The market-cum-terminal is one of the major infrastructure projects of Rep. Eduardo Gullas (Cebu, 1st district) and was aimed at decongesting the crowded Tabunok area.
The facility, which reportedly cost over P70 million and occupies a 2.6-hectare lot in Lagtang, has not been used since its construction in 2004.
Some bystanders have reportedly used the building as a drug den and even a temporary shelter of goats, prompting City Hall to set up a fence and detail guards there.