By ALDWIN QUITASOL
www.nordis.net

BAGUIO CITY — Vendors selling in the city night market along Harrison Road are divided on the proposed reshuffling of selling spaces.

According to Julia Cruz of the Highlanders Association, reshuffling is favorable to the vendors as it will provide equal opportunity for them to sell their wares. She said that some of them can hardly sell as their designated space is within a dim-lit area where the costumers have a hard time to see their wares. She added that some of them are in the areas where people seldom pass.

Cruz said during the regular session of the city council that the reshuffling should be done weekly.

City Administrator Carlos Canilao, however said that majority of the vendors are not in favor of the reshuffling during a consultation last month where only 300 of the more than 900 registered vendors attended.

He said that they have sent invitations to the different associations prior to the said consultation.

The city administrator said that the 300 belong to 18 associations. There are 33 vendors’ organizations in the said night market.

The night market is an experiment of the city government in a bid to address illegal vending and peddling thus reducing the number of ambulant vendors. Before Harrison Road was allotted to them, the vendors were given a selling area in the Athletic Bowl.

Councilor Richard Cariño proposed a rearrangement wherein it will be a little far from the road gutter.

According to Cruz, costumers do not any more go to the booths near the road gutter to the disadvantage of the vendors.

Councilor Lourdes Tabanda after hearing the report of the monitoring team assigned to the night market that not all spaces are being occupied also proposed the reduction of the number of spaces to allow the widening of the allotted vending spaces.

Vice Mayor and council presiding chairman Daniel Fariñas said that the different associations should consult the administrator.

He also advised that they put their other concerns in writing and submit it to the city council for further study. # nordis.net