Marquez to appeal street vendor ban; Fresnedi eyes night marts

Parañaque City Mayor Joey Marquez said yesterday he would still appeal to Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) Chairman Bayani Fernando to lift the ban on sidewalk vendors in his city during the Yuletide season, while Muntinlupa Mayor Jaime Fresnedi is eyeing night markets as an alternative for the displaced vendors.

"I also want the vendors to have a happy Christmas," Marquez told The STAR.

In an earlier interview, Marquez said he would take the risk in asking the MMDA chairman to hear him out even after Fernando had already rejected a similar request by Pasay City Mayor Wenceslao "Peewee" Trinidad.

Marquez said he will inform the Metro Manila Council about his appeal. He said he hopes the council will help him convince Fernando. The council, which is composed of Metro Manila’s mayors, will meet this week. But Marquez emphasized that sidewalk vending would be "regulated" and it would only be implemented this December.

At least a thousand vendors staged a rally at the Parañaque City Hall last week urging Marquez to allow them to sell on the streets at least for the Christmas season. The vendors were from Baclaran, La Huerta, Bicutan and Sucat, said city information officer Mar Jimenez.

Jimenez admitted that many of the vendors still continue to sell on sidewalks but would run with their wares when they see the MMDA enforcers.

For his part, Fresnedi remained firm in implementing the MMDA’s anti-sidewalk vending campaign.

In a statement, Fresnedi said the city government might set up a night market in a vacated lot near the former Alabang Terminal.

"This project is somehow planned to cater to these vendors so that they can earn a handsome income in the coming months due to the holiday rush. We at the city government are just doing our jobs in forbidding them to trade along sidewalks and roads because they become traffic obstructions, however, we also want them to earn a living for their families especially this time of the year," Fresnedi said in the statement.