Meat vendors decry new fees
MEAT vendors in Dagupan’s city market are crying foul against the city government’s sudden imposition of inspection fees starting July this year.
Eduardo Cervantes and Juliet Viray, presidents of the meat and chicken vendors associations, respectively, of the Malimgas Aliguas Market Vendors Federation appeared before the Sangguniang Panlungsod (SP) on Monday asking the latter to suspend the collection of inspection fee as provided in the city’s revenue code of 2006 or Ordinance No. 1855.
The city hall began imposing the inspection fee of P100 per head of cattle or carabao, P50 per head of hog, and P1 per head of chicken to the meat and chicken vendors last month.
The groups also asked Vice Mayor Belen Fernandez, chair of the SP, to initiate the amendment of the revenue code which imposes an added burden to them.
Both Cervantes and Viray earlier asked Mayor Benjamin Lim to hold the imposition of inspection fee in abeyance or at least reduce the amount but the latter said he cannot do it unless the revenue code is amended.
Carlito Vallo, city market superintendent, told the SP that his office actually stumbled upon the code’s provision by chance when it reviewed the Revenue Code of 2006 two months ago.
Vallo also pointed out that the collection will not be a part of the revenue of the market but the of the city veterinary office.
He noted that this provision in the city’s tax code was mandated to take effect in 2006 but this was overlooked.
The inspection fee is collected in addition to the entrance fee, permit fee and stall rental fee they are paying the city government daily.
“The new inspection fee is a big drain in our pocket,” said Viray as he pointed out that chicken vendors earn only P5 from sale of chicken per head.
Cervantes also asserted that his sector was not consulted nor invited during the public hearing when the tax code was discussed in the SP in 2005.
The vendors are now the second sector in the city that denounced what has come to be called “legislation without representation” in the city. The private schools’ group was the first.
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