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CEBU CITY, Philippines - Around a dozen sidewalk vendors whose items were earlier confiscated by the Cebu City government trooped to the office of City Administrator Francisco Fernandez on Tuesday, asking him to help them have their items released.
The vendors, all members of the Sto. Nino Sidewalk Vendors Association (SNSVA), alleged that members of City Hall's Squatters Prevention and Encroachment Elimination Division (SPEED) were selling off the confiscated items, mostly religious icons, said Basan Amora, president of the SNSVA.
They said they approached Fernandez because they heard that one of their colleagues got his items back with Fernandez' help.
SPEED confiscated the items last June while clearing F. Gonzales Street of vendors.
SPEED Chief Vicente Mercado, who also met with the vendors, said he did not know about SPEED members selling off the confiscated items. He urged the vendors to file a complaint so that it could be properly investigated.
?If found to be true, that violator will answer to his or her liability,? Mercado said.
Fernandez, for his part, explained that he worked for the release of the items of one vendor because Speed made a mistake in his case.
?He was caught vending on Osmeña Boulevard. But vendors are allowed there, so we were obliged to release his items,? Fernandez said.
In the case of the vendors who trooped to his office on Tuesday, Fernandez said he would refer their case to Vice Mayor Michael Rama, who is acting mayor in the absence of Mayor Tomas Osmeña.
Osmeña is in the United States undergoing medical treatment.
Fernandez said the vendors have been a persistent problem for the city in the past four years. He said it was up to Rama to take action.
Rama later met with the vendors, who pleaded with the acting mayor to stop SPEED from selling off their items and have these released.
Rama promised to help the vendors, but first asked them to individually submit to the Office of the Vice Mayor a list of items that SPEED confiscated and the value of each. Rama said this would be looked into by an investigating team headed by Sammy Dasok.
?(Rama) said we should wait for the result of the investigation of Dasok's team. Only then can we take steps if ever we decide to sue SPEED,? said Socrates Rota Pepino, secretary general of the Panaghugpong-Kadamay, which is helping SNSVA.
Rama said that once the vendors submit their lists, Dasok's team will compare these with the items stored in SPEED's stock room to ascertain if violations have been committed by SPEED members.
