Belmonte Clarifies Permit Issue On Community Pantries In Quezon City
COMMUNITY PANTRY PERMIT – Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte clarifies that there is no issue with permits for Community Pantries.
During an interview, Belmonte said that there was no need to issue permits for such projects in Quezon. However, she emphasized that a push for health and safety guidelines should be implemented.
Community Pantries have risen throughout the Philippines after Ana Patricia Non initiated the “Maginhawa Community Pantry”. Meanwhile, there are about 70 community pantries spread across Quezon City.
But recently, there have been issues surrounding the project saying that it needs to have a permit. This was followed by the alleged red-tagging of Non’s community pantry in Maginhawa.
Still, mayors such as Pasig’s Vico Sotto and Belmonte said there wouldn’t be a need for such a permit. During an interview with Headstart, Belmonte said:
Maybe we should have some guidelines at least…
The barangay can provide you with needs that you might have difficulty in providing for yourself. For example, security. The barangays can help with that
Furthermore, Belmonte said that the government should stay away from the community initiative. “Purposely, hindi ko siya binisita kasi ayoko maging epal. Ayokong mahaluan ‘yung ginagawa niya ng politika kasi ang dalisay-dalisay ng kaniyang intention, ng kaniyang ginagawa“, she said.
As community pantries gained more traction, Interior Undersecretary Martin Diño said organizers need to seek permits from barangays and local government units. However, he eventually withdrew his statements following massive support for the project, even from big-name officials.
Unfortunately, some of the organizers of these projects have allegedly been red-tagged by the police. Among these organizers was Ana Patricia Non who had to temporarily close operations after allegedly being red-tagged.
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