Mayor, vendors’ leader clash over market rehab projects

By Joseph B.A. Marzan

 

Tensions ran high Monday as Iloilo City Mayor Jerry Treñas and a leader of vendors’ associations butted heads over one of the city’s public market rehabilitation projects.

Treñas called the vendors’ associations of public markets in the city to discuss the rehab design and relocation of vendors in the Arevalo, La Paz, and Jaro Big markets.

Also discussed were updates on the public-private partnerships (PPP) to rehabilitate, manage, and operate the Iloilo City Public (“Central”) and Iloilo Terminal (“Super”) markets, in partnership with the PPP Center, the national government’s lead agency on big-ticket projects.

Treñas said they have yet to come up with the designs for the Central and Super markets as these will depend on the investor that would bag the projects, which are estimated to cost P2.3 billion.

Market sounding has been scheduled by the PPP Center, a process of letting the market know of available investments and check which entities are interested.

The two interested parties in these projects, according to Treñas, were the Sy family-led SM Development Corporation (SMDC) and the Manny V. Pangilinan-led Metro Pacific Investments Corporation (MPIC).

When Daily Guardian asked why the city government is pursuing the PPP route for the two markets, the mayor only said that it was “because we couldn’t afford it.”

He explained that the ground floors of the two markets would retain management and operation by the city government, while the second floor would be manned by the private partner, citing the projects’ Terms of Reference.

“The Central and Terminal markets, as I have said before, would be presented for PPP. We have market sounding by the PPP Center, a national government office, where they would announce that we have an opening for PPP and check which entities would be interested, so that we can proceed when someone is interested. But if no one is interested, we don’t need to proceed, and we would just have to find someone who would be willing to fix that up,” Treñas said in his opening statement during the meeting.

The mayor asked the vendors’ leaders if they want improvements in their markets.

All of them agreed, except for Rex Donasco, the president of the Association of Stall Owners and Transient Vendors of the Iloilo City Public Market (ASTRAVEN).

Donasco clarified that he agreed to further developments in the central market, but he was “on the fence” about the PPP with a third-party entity from outside of Iloilo.

The mayor sounded irate over ASTRAVEN’s skepticism on the PPP project. He pleaded with the vendors to support the market development projects as it will help local businesses.

“If we develop the Terminal market, which has offices upstairs, they could buy from the stalls before they go home. We have to think about helping the vendors there, because there are offices, and what if there would possibly be BPOs (business processes outsourcing firms) there? We also have to think about the income of the vendors as well,” the mayor added.

Treñas said ASTRAVEN needs to clarify their position if they would support the PPP development of the market.

He added that he “did not want to look stupid” in front of the PPP if the vendors’ group decides to oppose the project in the middle of preparations.

“What I want is [clarity], because it would be difficult that in the middle of this you would say that you’re not interested, then file another case against the city. We have to be clear this time on whether or not we want to push this PPP because if we proceed we don’t want another commotion against it,” Treñas said.

He added that people have to understand the importance of the projects, citing the current coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and his vision of what would be good for the vendors.

“Anytime you’ve made a decision, you can come to me after. I don’t want to go to the PPP Center and tell them that we want the whole market! I will be shamed of that. Who wants to be sitting there with us? We’ve been struggling to find investors. We all have to understand that we are in a pandemic, and we don’t want to just keep saying anything. We’re lucky if we can find those who are interested.”

After the meeting, Donasco told reporters that he did not want to “die fighting the city government” over the Central market development, referring to their 7-year-old case in the local courts.

He touted the central market as a ‘heritage market’, citing that the central market earns more than P1 million per month, thus he would prefer the city government to undertake the project instead of a private entity.

“I wanted to clear it up with the mayor that if the plans given with the PPP to us would be good, we would give up the case. But they don’t have anything yet because there were no plans under PPP yet. At the time, with the two previous mayors, before we were asked to approve the current privatization plan, they presented their plans so that we could give suggestions,” Donasco said.

He said that he would have to meet with the ASTRAVEN members first before expressing their collective sentiment.

The Central Market had already been subject to private development back in 2014, but it was stalled after vendors filed a case to stop the takeover, citing the lack of guarantee to retain all vendors and transient owners.

 

MARKET DESIGNS

Iloilo City Architect Regina Gregorio presented the designs for the La Paz, Arevalo, and Jaro Big markets.

The LaPaz and Jaro markets are valued at P395 million each while the Arevalo market rehab will cost P150 million, based on the city’s loan agreement with the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP).

Like the bigger markets, the three district markets would have two floors, with service and customer parking spaces relocated to the second floor, along with usable comfort rooms and elevators.

Passengers at markets, which also serve as terminals to jeepneys serving routes to Iloilo province, will still be able to ferry passengers, with the terminals in Super and Jaro Big markets to be relocated to their second floors.

There will also be open spaces for the market vendors, with the design for the La Paz market maintaining its arch as a heritage marker and a fountain area in its exterior.

Gregorio said the design planning process considered all market vendors, the existing stalls, coffee shops, restaurants, and other leisure establishments.

“We had a series of consultations with the markets-in-charge. What we want is that everyone who is currently there would be returned then. There would definitely be space, we only took a long time because of the accommodated transients,” Gregorio said.

She added that their office also identified areas near the markets which would be used as temporary market areas, subject to the final approval by the market-in-charge and the Public Safety and Transportation Management Office (PSTMO).

Gregorio said that they have studied the designs to accommodate more stalls with an additional 15 percent to the current capacity.

The leaders of Mandurriao, Molo, and Jaro Small public market vendors also attended the meeting.

Treñas said there will be future improvements in their markets – the Mandurriao public market would be developed under the direction of Iloilo City Lone District Representative Julienne Baronda while the Molo market would be expanded.