700 Mandaue City businesses told to get new permits

MANDAUE CITY, Philippines – At least 700 notices of violations were issued by the Mandaue City Business Permit Licensing Office (BPLO) to businesses that are operating in the absence of a valid permit.

Recipients were also directed to comply with requirements for the issuance of a business permit within a period of 30 days from the receipt of said notice.

Failure to comply with the city’s mandate could lead to the revocation of their existing permits and the closure of the establishment, said lawyer Lizer Malate, the BPLO chief.

Malate said that some of these businesses have been operating for years now without a valid permit from City Hall.

The deadline for business permit renewal is supposedly scheduled in January of each year.

“Wala gyuy renew-renew og business permit, way bayad bayad. Naa sad mi nakita, kanang mga branch niya usa ra ang naay business permit, maoy gi photocopy para sa tanan. Kinahanglan every place of business naa gyud kay business permit,” he said.

(They have not renewed their business permits and have not been paying the corresponding fees.  We also saw the display of photocopies of business permits that were issued to an establishment and shared among its many branches.  Each of the businesses is supposed to have one business permit.)

Malate said that the BPLO’s inspection and enforcement team has been constantly monitoring the operation of businesses here since Mayor Jonas Cortes assumed the city’s top post after the May 2019 election.

The conduct of regular inspection is also a means to determine compliance with the city’s health and safety protocols under the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

“Kay kinahanglan gyud na to ang revenue for the projects coming next year kay wala ta kahibaw aning..Covid pa,” he said.

(We are badly in need to raise revenues to fund the city’s operations next year especially since we still do not know if COVID will still be here then.)

To especially encourage the renewal of business permits, Malate said they already simplified the process as follows:

1. application filing and evaluation

2. assessment and payment

3. issuance of business permit

/ dcb