BAGUIO City Mayor Mauricio Domogan said there will be no permits given to tenants at Kayang area in the market as no agreements were reached between the city and stall owners on their lease.
Domogan said talks with the tenants have failed since 2015 with no meeting of the minds resulting to no contracts renewed.
Domogan said most of the vendors have vacated the property owned by the city with a handful remaining on site to which no permits will be issued.
The contract of the group of leases expired two years and upon moves for renewal, the group was not amenable to the terms and conditions set by the city, citing differences in rent and conditions in the contract on improvements were rejected by the group.
Domogan added the original rent set by the city for the space was as low as 25 centavos and was recently raised to P6 per square meter but tenants have rejected the offer of the city and also oppose the scheme set that all renovations for the space will automatically belong to the city after the lease contract expires, with the assurance the same tenants can participate in a bidding at the end of the agreed period of time.
Today, a civil case now progress over the property dispute between the government and the group of tenants led by Josephine Bayabayan–Nuñez alleging the city as well as Domogan, has deprived them of process in the lease agreements over lots at Kayang Hilltop.
The move of the city through the mayor has been described by the complainants to be “unreasonable, unjust and illegal to the principle that ours is a government by the people and for the people who put the government officials into office to serve them and to oppress them.”
Counsel to Nuñez and group, Emiliano Gayo and Zosimo Abratique said the plaintiffs have invested substantial amounts in putting up their stalls on the city lot which have been leased to them.