By: Nonnette C. Bennett
Baguio City – Baguio City Mayor Benjamin Magalong reiterated to the Maharlika Livelihood Center business occupants that new policies and contracts will be applied to some 600 legitimate or illegitimate owners because the facility was turned over to the local government on May 28, 2025 by the Human Settlements Development Corporation (HSDC) during a dialogue on July 17 at the CDRRMC building in City Camp.
The turnover took effect as the 50-year lease over the property ended on April 28, 2025 with the city setting up a transition team for the smooth transfer of business contracts to the city. Magalong said that all contracts are deemed terminated after the end of the lease.
City Budget Officer Leticia Clemente told the tenants under monthly contracts that they need to apply for a contract to the space that they are presently occupying and this will be verified by the team. She said that there were guidelines drafted for the multiple applicants to former single stalls that were subdivided. “There is a process,” she said, to determine the rightful owners. Mayor Magalong proposed that the multiple concessionaires form a partnership so that only one signatory appears on the contract.
Mayor Magalong said that interviews are being conducted to verify ownership of the stalls, but he noted that some watchers claim that they are only sales assistants and not owners. He said that this delays the process of identifying rightful occupants. He also noted that there are some who own stalls on different floors of MLC. This was not fair in giving livelihood opportunities to all, he underscored.
Regarding the parking area, Atty. Clemente said that the part of the building is needed by the City to remain as parking spaces. She said that relocation of the enterprises who were affected by the fire in the section to the upperpart of the building is an option that will be studied.
Other concerns were: generator set for brownouts, leaking walkways and wet stairs during intense rains, sanitation because of garbage left along alleys, unlicensed massage therapists, and additional fees for eateries. Mayor Magalong directed the solution to the issues to MLC Administrator, Councilor Art Allad-iw, the City Building and Architect’s Office, and Councilor Van Dicang.
Mayor Magalong assured the business owners that the city government was going to help but said that the remedies were a shared responsibility.
On the questioned raised whether the MLC was part of the Market Development Plan, Mayor Magalong told the stall renters that this was not included.
