7:30 PM
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“Closed” signs were posted on 94 stalls at the city public market which signaled that said stalls are now ready to accept new applicants for business.
The city government of Koronadal, through the City Treasurer’s Office (CTO) headed by City Treasurer Marloun Gumbao, conducted Operation padlock on February 2, 2012 and initiated the closure of said stalls considered as delinquent in paying rental fees to the city.
Gumbao said that before they carried out Oplan padlock, series of demand letters were sent by his office to the concerned stall owners but they still failed to pay their dues until the closure period. He further said that this move would show the city’s commitment to implement appropriate measures to improve market operation and to also give justice to good payers.
Also during the operation, the team discovered that there were some stalls no longer occupied by the original applicants and already sub-leased for higher rental fees. In the dry goods section alone, sub-leasing could peg rent to as much as PhP4,500 a month while the original stall owner would only pay the city the amount of PhP999. In the fish section, the city only collects PhP300 per month but the new occupants pay PhP100 per day for the same reason. The CTO said that if left unchecked, said modus operandi would be detrimental to the market operation and would cause the cost of market goods to rise due to high rental fees.
Most of the 94 stalls that were closed were from the meat, vegetable, dry goods and the fish sections.
Operation padlock was generally smooth despite the resistance of some affected stall owners as the team explained the provisions of the local revenue code in handling their sentiments.
Application for lease is now open to interested entrepreneurs who would like to start their business at the public market.
