BACOLOD City Councilor Bartolome Orola, chairman of committee on markets, yesterday clarified that the presence of fish vendors on Ballesteros Street, beside the Gaisano Department Store, is not illegal.
His statement came after Councilors Sonya Verdeflor and Wilson Gamboa had earlier expressed their opposition to the presence of the fish vendors in the area.
The two councilors also said that no resolution was submitted to the City Council to close Ballesteros Street and to reroute the public utility jeepneys passing the said road.
Orola said that on August 24, the City Council approved a resolution supporting the local chief executive to take immediate measures against the proliferation of fish vendors around the exteriors of Central Market by designating proper areas or stalls to ensure cleanliness and orderliness.
Orola, who authored the resolution, said that during its approval, Verdeflor and Gamboa were not around because they left the session hall early.
The resolution stated that the affected families of fish vendors who are operating outside the Central Market will be assured of a special designated area or series of stalls will be constructed so as not to affect their source of their income while making the area clean and orderly.
He said a series of meetings were conducted before the fish vendors were relocated to Ballesteros Street.
“It is not illegal and due process was observed,” Orola added. (MAP)