By SHERWIN DE VERA
www.nordis.net
VIGAN CITY—The Save Baguio Market Movement and other groups are urging the city council to officially accept the withdrawal of SM Prime Holdings, Inc. (SMPHI) from the Public Market Redevelopment Project.
SMPHI holds the original proponent status for the P4.5 billion market rehabilitation project under the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) scheme.
Mayor Benajamin Magalong, through the city’s public information office, announced the company’s withdrawal on Saturday. A December 19 SMPHI letter to the mayor stated that “current conditions surrounding the project” led to the decision not to proceed.
“(I)t appears that Baguio City, the executive and legislative branches, the [market] vendors, and other stakeholders in the project have several matters to settle before the Project may be undertaken,” read part of the letter.
The Save Baguio Market Movement called on council members to “formally accept SM’s withdrawal in writing” or reject it before January 9, the last day of the 120-day review period under the Public-Private Partnership guidelines.
“The public is aware that if the City Council, as the Approving Body, fails to provide a decision in writing within the prescribed period, the PPP project will be considered approved,” Save Baguio Market Movement stated.
For the same reason, the writers’ collective and media platform Ili Press asked the lawmakers for “their action as soon as the next regular session scheduled on January 5.”
The city council, in its last session before the Yuletide break, has set the final discussion of the project for Monday.
People’s victory
The Save Baguio Market Movement, along with other organizations behind the campaign, hailed SMPHI’s withdrawal as a “people’s victory” resulting from the collective action of vendors, residents, and other sectors.
“The people gained this victory by organizing together, researching and discussing collectively, voicing dissent, engaging with local government, and holding our elected officials to high standards,” it stated.
“When the people support one another and rise together, they can face giants, and that’s exactly what Baguio citizens just did,” the network added.
Tongtongan ti Umili said the SMPHI’s withdrawal was a “direct result of people speaking clearly and in numbers…the power of the people.”
“This win did not come from spin, backroom deals, or ‘misunderstandings,’ but from clarity, persistence, and refusal to be worn down. No lies, just a shared stand that what belongs to the public should remain with the public,” the group stated.
Zosimo Abratique, president of the Baguio Market Vendor’s Alliance Consolidated, Inc., thanked residents and the Save Baguio Market Movement for their support.
“Our work is now cut for us. Time is of the essence,” he said. “Let us now join hands with the City government and revisit the master plan it created. Let us help the government to be able to fund the development.”
Abandon PPP
Community groups reiterated their opposition to the “mallification” of public spaces. They reject the corporate-led market development and call on the city council to revisit the resolution that selected a PPP for the market rehabilitation.
“Our stand against mallification and corporations remains firm. We do not want PPP as a modality to renovate the public market,” stated Ili Press. “We do not want big corporations like SMPHI to lay a hand on our market and other public spaces.”
Meanwhile, Tongtongan ti Umili asked the city council to repeal Resolution No. 399, passed in 2020, which had selected the PPP scheme to undertake the project.
“What Baguio needs is a development path that puts people’s welfare at the center, one that is publicly funded, transparent, and accountable, not dependent on corporate partners whose interests are structurally misaligned with public service,” the group added.
For Abratique and the rest of the opposition, the city should adopt a different PPP brand: “Let us push forward our own version of PPP, a People-led, People-centered, and Publicly-funded public market.”#nordis.net
