(Mayor Cristy Angeles stresses a point before market vendors in Tarlac City assuring them of their rights and welfare. Photo Courtesy of PIA 3)
TARLAC CITY – The city government has assured market vendors here during a dialogue that it will continue to fight for their rights and welfare.
“We want to recover our public market and operate this for the better welfare and protection of the rights of our market vendors,” Mayor Cristy Angeles said.
In October 2014, the improvement, development, maintenance and management of the public market were transferred to the Paliparan Central Market Corp. by virtue of a lease agreement.
Angeles told the vendors that the Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 63 has already issued a temporary restraining order against the firm from committing further acts in violation of the lease agreement and other relevant laws and regulations in the provision of the Tarlac City Omnibus Market Code of 2008 pertaining to rental rates, procedure in awarding stallholders, prohibition on subleasing and prohibition against obstructions on passageways and sidewalk vendors.
“In an order issued by the RTC, the court finds that there is a need to issue a temporary restraining order to discontinue the corporation’s non-compliance with all local and national laws pertaining to market and sanitation,” Angeles said.
“They also refused to implement the Market Code of Tarlac City, and the establishment of structures without prior approval considering that the public market is a public utility imbued with public interest,” she added.
“We have reached 50 percent in this battle and we will continue to fight so that our public market will be given back to our market vendors,” she vowed.
Angeles said the city government will continue to monitor the status of the issue and shall take the necessary actions. It was learned that the preliminary injunction for the case is set on Thursday, January 17.
