Traffic management is serious business for Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña.
Osmeña today announced that vendors occupying the sidewalks along B. Rodriguez Street will have to clear the area after the Sinulog Festival on January.
According to Osmeña, he has been receiving complaints from establishments along the area, including the Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center, about sidewalk congestion because of vendors occupy the area intended for pedestrians.
“They have to go,” he told reporters during a press conference this morning.
Osmeña also reiterated that holding the annual night market in Colon Street is not an option, as managing the traffic should be the top priority for the city.
“(It) cannot be (in) Colon. We have to choose, road for vendors or road for vehicles? Simple kaayo akong tubag niana (my answer to that is very simple), (the) road (is) for vehicles not for vendors,” he said.
He stressed the city is not obligated to provide vendors an area where they can sell.
Osmeña said that if the committee handling the night market can not come up with a viable option, there is a possibility that hosting the annual night market might be suspended this year.
This was confirmed by Department for the Welfare of the Urban Poor head Genevieve Alcoseba, who said that the Colon night market that is supposed to start this Friday, November 18, and to end on December 31, has been put on hold.
ButAlcoseba said they will have a meeting with Francisco “Bimbo” Fernandez, the executive assistant to the mayor, to discuss and look for a possible win-win solution.
Meanwhile, Alcoseba warned vendors who are looking to participate in the night market about an unidentified person who collected P3,000 as rental downpayment, P50 for the identification card and P80 for t-shirt printing.
Alcoseba said they have not started collecting any fees for the night market.
She urged the vendors to visit the City Hall if they have questions.