Online portal to streamline market vendor spaces, stalls in QC

FILE: A worker arranges bottled honey, vinegar, and bagoong isda (fermented fish) at the Kadiwa stall at a gasoline station along Timog Avenue corner Sgt. Esguerra Avenue in Quezon City. (PNA photo by Robert Oswald P. Alfiler)

MANILA – Market vendors in Quezon City may now apply for and reserve spaces and stalls through the online portal Market One-Stop Shop (MOSS).

In a press conference at the Quezon City Hall, City Administrator Michael Alimurung said the portal would identify “legitimate” vendor spots without obstructions and could be applied for through the Quezon City E-Services website at qceservices.quezoncity.gov.ph.

“Imagine if the entire city was treated like a public market. This system allows us to identify vendor spots online. It’s thinking bigger by allowing us to treat the entire city as to how to help our vendors,” Alimurung said.

The program, he said, is part of Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte’s goal of making the city “the preferred destination of doing business.”

He noted that to ensure the adoption of the new system, the local government installed Wi-Fi access points in barangay halls and thousands of other public places where the public may access the Internet for free.

A caravan will be launched to help existing and aspiring vendors register in the portal.

Margarita Santos, head of the Quezon City Business Permits and Licensing Office, assured that the system would not replace any jobs, such as those of “market masters” or market managers, and would only make their jobs easier.

“Magiging mas efficient po ang pag-apply ng stalls, pagbabayad, at pagco-collect ng market rentals. Mababawasan din po trabaho ng city treasurer’s office dahil hindi na sila pupunta sa stalls para maningil (Applying for stalls will become more efficient, including paying and collecting market rentals. This will also make the job of the city treasurer’s office easier because they won’t have to collect rent in person),” Santos said.

The MOSS, she said, would have a “first in, first out” queuing system that would award, at most, a five-year contract to the first vendor who applies for the space or stall.

“Pero maaari siyang bumalik sa dulo kapag hindi nila nakumpleto requirements after a certain number of days (But they may go back to the end of the queue if they’re unable to complete the requirements after a certain number of days),” Santos said.

Registered vendors will be issued IDs that would be checked by market inspectors to ensure that registered stalls are occupied by the correct tenants.

“Sa ngayon, meron kaming around 12,000 vendors in stalls in public markets. Yun ang mga target natin. Meron din tayong 43 private markets na target din natin dito (To date, we have around 12,000 vendors occupying public market stalls. Those are our target. We also have 43 private markets that we intend to include),” she said.

The MOSS, Santos said, would also help eliminate red tape and corruption, such as those who reserve market spaces and would rent out the space to other vendors.

“Dahil online system ito meron tayong digital footprint para makita kung saan nagtagal ang application at kung sino ang may kasalanan ay ire-reprimand natin (Because this is an online system we have a digital footprint so we can see where the application took time, who is at fault, and would allow us to reprimand them),” she said.

Santos noted that the system would also take note of infractions committed by vendors, which may result in the revocation of their registered space or stall.

Once these spaces are full, she said, registered vendors would remain queued online until free space becomes available.

Programs and Projects Officer Procopio Lipana said the portal would allow the city government and other law enforcers to easily identify and apprehend illegal vendors. “Dito sa Quezon City meron tayong anti-hawkers division. Meron din tayo market inspectors na nagche-check ng tamang size ng stalls. Makikita nila kapag may mga illegal vendors (Here in Quezon City, we have an anti-hawkers division. We also have market inspectors who check the correct size of stalls. They will see if there are illegal vendors),” Lipana said.