No trash bags, no permit for vendors in Quiapo, Sta. Cruz

MANILA, Philippines - No vendors will be allowed to ply their trade in Quiapo and Sta. Cruz districts unless they have garbage bags for the trash they generate, a police official said Saturday.

Newly installed Sta. Cruz police station chief Superintendent Nelson Yabut, following a familiarization tour of his area of jurisdiction, said he observed that trash and refuse litter the streets of Carriedo and Avenida.

“It seems that vendors just left their refuse in the streets after leaving the area at night creating a huge pile of garbage and making the street looked like a mini-dump,” Yabut said.

He directed the vendors to present spare trash bags for their garbage before they will be allowed to sell. “No trash bags, no permit,” Yabut told the vendors.

At the same time, he requested establishment owners along Avenida and C.M. Recto Avenue to install lights in front of their shops to thwart would-be robbers. He said snatchings and robberies are frequent in these areas, especially at night, due to darkness. He said he will request the city government to have operators light up areas in front of their establishments before they are granted business licenses.

He also deployed additional police officers to go on foot patrol in crime-prone areas in Quiapo and Sta. Cruz and advised barangay tanods to be more vigilant.

He directed the Plaza Miranda police detachment to make the area off limits to herbal medicine vendors who reportedly sell abortifacient drugs and concoctions.

Yabut vowed to exert more effort to lessen the crime statistics in his area of jurisdiction through constant dialogues with barangay officials. – Nestor Etolle