CEBU City Councilor Pastor “Jun” Alcover Jr. has slammed Mayor Nestor Archival over the continued operation of the Colon Night Market, calling the mayor’s justification “unjustifiable.”
This came after Archival, in a statement on Sunday, September 28, 2025, said there were no compelling reasons to suspend the night market despite legal and technical questions.
Archival rejected Alcover’s call for a review of the market’s compliance with existing city ordinances.
In an interview on Tuesday, September 30, Alcover questioned the mayor’s grasp of the issue.
Alcover questioned whether Archival truly understood the issue or simply failed to grasp it.
The councilor clarified that the Garbo Asenso Sumbanan Alyansa (Gasa) sa Gugma Board, created under City Ordinance 2386, is the body mandated to approve the operation of the Colon Night Market.
He stressed that the board is not the one collecting fees from vendors, contrary to the impression given by Archival when he raised the issue of unremitted collections from the previous Gasa board.
Alcover said that without the Gasa sa Gugma Board’s approval, the Colon Night Market’s operation remains questionable in terms of legality and compliance. (CAV)