THE City Government has created a Special Task Force to act on the numerous reports of child trafficking and prostitution in Cagayan de Oro.
Led by the Regulatory and Complaints Board (RCB), the task force conducted an inspection of the motels, inns, and lodges particularly in barangays Consolacion, Carmen, and also along Velez street.
City Administrator Teddy Sabuga-a said the inns or motels that were checked is allegedly where the rape cases happened.
"We want them to understand that they should follow the standards or regulations. We also advised them to out up signages that minors are not allowed without guardians," he said.
"Dili kay gapangita ta ug bikil but we are just making sure that all our hotels are compliant because after all we are the City of Golden Friendship, we want to be child-friendly," Sabuga-a said.
The inspection also meant to check if the inns have renewed their business permit and are indeed operating illegally.
Lawyer Edgardo Uy, RCB chairperson said the surprise inspections will now be conducted regularly.
Uy said initially, they found no minors during the inspection but observed other violations. He said majority of the inns are not up to the sanitation standards.
He said log books are also missing while others do not have one. Uy said this is required under a city ordinance.
Most of them also don't have Closed-Circuit televisions (CCTV) and if there are, these have malfunctioned and needs replacement.
Pursuant to City Ordinance No. 13394-2018, otherwise known as the Cagayan de Oro Comprehensive Children's Welfare Code of 2018, the city needs to ensure that every child is protected and safe.
"We will check them and see if they complied, otherwise they will have to face penalties," Uy added.