Cinema, 6 other firms padlocked in Quezon City

The Quezon City government closed down Monday night a cinema and six other establishments for violating city ordinances and squatting on government property.

The closure also signals the start of the "retrieval" of several land properties of the city government with expired leasing contracts, said Rolando Montiel, chief of the Quezon City General Services Office (GSO).

Montiel said the retrieval of such properties and selling or leasing them at "appropriate prices" would help the city government in paying off its current debt amounting to over P2 billion.

Padlocked were the United Cinema Inc.-Ocean Cinema main theater, owned by Prisco Pascual Jr., People’s Martial Arts club, managed by Winston Aliwete, Mister Manly Department Store, owned by Lee Sun Lee, and Jolly Balls, owned by Rodelio Cabillan, all housed at the Ocean Building at 628 EDSA, Barangay Socorro, Quezon City.

The cinema’s two mini-theaters, which were found to be showing indecent films, were also ordered closed. The orders were issued by Pax Maghacot, officer-in-charge of the Business Permits and Licenses Office (BPLO), for violation of the Quezon City Revenue Code and the Sanitation Code of the Philippines.

"The establishments have been operating without a mayor’s permit since March last year and upon inspection, were found to have lacked certificates of occupancy from the city health department, sanitary permits, and their employees had no health certificates," Maghacot said. — Nikko Dizon