Forcing vendors to rent bamboo cots is illegal

Market authorities yesterday warned bamboo cot owners that compelling ambulant vendors at the Carbon Public Market to rent “lantays” for the display of their products is illegal.

Mayor Tomas Osmeña agreed with the recommendation of market administrator Raquel Arce that bamboo cot owners should wait for these vendors to approach them on their need to rent “lantays”.

Osmeña also approved of the suggestion that bamboo cots displayed in street sides of the Carbon market area without vendors using them would be confiscated in favor of the city.

“Dili na g’yod namo i-uli pa ang masakmit namong mga lantay kon among masakpan. Mao nga magmatngon g’yod mo nga dili makalapas sa atong kasabotan,” Arce told bamboo cot owners in a meeting at her office yesterday morning.

Of the 18 persons engaged in renting “lantay” to ambulant vendors at the Carbon market, only nine of them showed up yesterday. The bamboo cot owners vehemently denied that they compel ambulant vendors to rent their cots at P10 for whole night use.

But they said they purposely display their “lantays” in street sides of Plaridel, Lincoln, Manalili and Magallanes because it is easier to entice vendors to rent their bamboo cots as a number of these ambulant vendors are in those areas.

It was also learned that some of those who attended yesterday’s meeting with Arce own more than 100 bamboo cots, while others own 30 to 70 units.

Maria Pino-Buanghog, president of the Cebu City United Vendors Association, suggested that the cots should be placed in a definite area so ambulant vendors who would want to use them would be the ones to approach the bamboo cot owners.

Arce also instructed these “lantay” owners to collect their cots not later than 6 a.m. to make it easy for garbage collectors to clean up the surroundings.

Osmeña approved all of Arce’s recommendations, including the suggestion that personnel hired by these “lantay” owners to oversee their business should be given an identification card issued by market authorities. They are to wear the ID all the time while on the job. — Rene U. Borromeo/MEEV