Only 7 days to clear obstructions

Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte has given residents and business owners seven days to clear their areas.

This as city hall issued notices of violations to concerned residents and establishment owners asking them to remove objects and structures extending beyond the property line, following the city’s continuing clearing operations.

They were given the deadline to adhere to the notice and self-demolish or face mandatory demolition of the encroachments by the city government.

Personnel of a task force was given by Mayor Belmonte 60 days to oversee the local government’s “Bayanihan sa Lansangan” campaign that aims to remove all road obstructions and reclaim all public roads while giving the residents due process.

“We are giving them some more time to begin the effort of moving their own properties backward to clear the sidewalk,” Belmonte said.

She also stressed that the operation is implemented equally, giving the rich and the poor the same treatment. “Nobody is above the law. Even cement structures or houses, as long as they are encroachments, will be dealt with legally as per legal requirements.”

In his report to the Office of the Mayor, head of the Department of Public Order and Safety Ret. Brig. Gen. Elmo San Diego said, as of 30 August, the task force has already conducted clearing operations in major thoroughfares and main roads with almost 800 obstructions removed from sidewalks.

Meanwhile, Belmonte personally visited last Saturday Barangay Culiat to check the registration of market vendors. Through the registration, vendors displaced by the clearing operations will be legally entitled to operate and can avail of affordable stalls currently being worked out by the local government.

It is the city’s initiative to help vendors regain their livelihood that was affected by the clearing operations. Belmonte also promised to look for a permanent spot where they can continue earning a living.

“It is the objective of this measure to protect them from opportunists like syndicates and protection rackets that force them to do business without the permits from the local government,” the mayor said.