Night market vendors mull tent design

October 14, 2019 Metro BLISTT

BAGUIO CITY —In a bid to win the votes of the night market vendors, businessman Rocky Aliping and block leader Eulesis Cachero went toe to toe in presenting their proposals during the second night market meeting at the covered court of Sto. Niño “Slaughterhouse” Compound on October 4, 2019.

Councilor Philian Weygan-Allan, Chairperson of the Committee on Market, Trade, Commerce, and Agriculture, convened the night market vendors for a second meeting to prompt them reach a consensus on the use of uniformed tents in line with the city’s mandate to beautify the night market.

In his proposal, Aliping promised the provision and installation of retractable tents, floodlights in the vicinity to light up the night market, and streamers bearing the words “Baguio City Night Market”.

The proposal also came with a promise to provide the following services: setting up and dismantling of tents, cleaning and clearing of the night market area, and additional security and utility personnel. Stall owners at the food section will pay P25.00 pesos while stall owners at the dry goods section will pay P20.00 per night for these services in addition to the P50.00 weekly rent paid to the city.

On the other hand, Cachero proposed a design that will maintain the use of the vendors’ stalls made of metal pipes. Synthetic Taffeta fabrics will be used to roof the stalls following a design that will achieve color uniformity. Cachero said each stall owner will pay at most P1, 000.00 to cover for the expenses.

The block leader emphasized that his proposal will not burden the vendors to pay anything other than the amount to be collected for the expenses. The majority of the stall owners voted for Cachero’s proposal.

“The daily cost is one thing. The appropriateness of Mr. Aliping’s tents’ design is another. For example, the dimensions of his tents do not fit well at the night market as they obstruct the alley ways. That’s why majority of the vendors chose the second debecause it sits squarely on the 1.5m x 1.5m slots they have,” Daryll Kim Longid, POSD Deputy Head, clarified.

Since some stall owners at the food section are already using tents provided by Aliping, a meeting among the food vendors will be conducted to establish whether they should continue subscribing to Aliping’s services or go with the design chosen by the majority.

”The Full implementation of tenting the entire Night Market is on October 24 as per Mayor Benjie Magalong’s instruction,” Longid announced. Weygan-Allan emphasized that giving the vendors the chance to decide on the matter is just and fair as long as the chosen design and its execution will be on par with the city’s standards for the beautification of the night market.

Jordan G. Habbiling