BAYOMBONG, Nueva Vizcaya —The local government unit here has started to issue closure notices to business establishments occupying 15 dilapidated stalls beside the Roman Catholic Church in barangay Don Mariano Marcos in this town.
Mayor Ralph Lantion said the closure order was issued after the occupants and business operators failed to comply with regulatory laws such as business taxes, among others.
He also said the stalls and houses are already considered as fire hazards and are “eyesores” for the villagers owing to their old structures.
The stalls house the Bacolod Grill, the Gambito Law Office, a tailoring shop, a beauty parlor, a cellphone shop and mini-stores, among others.
Tarpaulins bearing provisions of the local tax ordinance “No business permit issued due to non-compliance with regulatory requirements” were posted on the stalls as LGU workers demolished one of the structures.
The notice of closure for the business establishments is an initial move of the LGU to claim ownership of the area.
“The occupants have not been paying their local taxes properly and some have resorted to let other private businessmen rent a portion of the whole structure. They can still stay for a while, but no more business operation,” Lantion said.
He said they have given 90-day period for the occupants to leave the establishments and transfer to other areas after the court issued a decision favoring the claim of the LGU for ownership of the area.
The affected villagers earlier sought the assistance of Bishop Emeritus Ramon Villena at the Clergy House in this town.
Evangeline Velasco, 63, one of the affected occupants, said they will seek a motion for reconsideration before the Department of Environment and Natural Resources to clarify the case.
“We were not informed earlier about the court decision so that we could have filed an appropriate action. This is unfair and unjust move against us,” she said.
Velasco said they were deceived in believing their leaders’ transparency stand on the issue of ownership.
“We have yet to see the proof that the LGU owns the lot and they already have the title for that purpose,” she added.
