Updates on Zamboanga City’s Business Permits Administration

Two months ago I observed a roundtable discussion between Zamboanga City Mayor Celso Lobregat, City Government Department Heads, representatives from the Chamber of Commerce, and the United States Ambassador to the Philippines. The Mayor was presenting to the Ambassador a summary of the activities and benefits of a USAID – sponsored capacitation project. It was about improving the way Zamboanga City administers the Business Permit, and as I listened to his talk I was struck by the similarity of conditions faced by most cities in the issuance of this Permit. 

            The innovations mentioned by the good mayor were simple, sensible, and practical. Moreover, any city in the Philippines could do the same things that the Mayor talked about. They intensified the enforcement of regulatory requirements between February to December, so that businesses would have the required clearances by the time they applied for renewal of their Mayor’s Permits by January of the next year. They changed the sequence of activities in the process of renewing a Permit, so that applicants can pay the requisite taxes and fees even before they have complied with all requirements (thus ensuring collection of revenues).

                        Zamboanga City had three other innovations that may not be relevant or applicable to other cities. The first has to do with businesses located in buildings that have violated the Land Use Plan or the Building Code. The City only recently adopted its own Land Use and Zoning Ordinance, and is now enforcing it strictly. Here, city officials faced a dilemma: should they issue Business Permits to establishments located in buildings that violate either the Building Code or the Land Use ordinance? If they would, it might be construed as condoning the violation. But if they wouldn’t, a considerable number of legitimate businesses would not be able to get Permits, and the City would not be able to collect related taxes and fees from them. Mayor Lobregat resolved the problem by allowing owners of non-complying buildings to formally promise (in writing) to comply with the law. That way, local authorities had more teeth to enforce the Building Code and the Zoning Plan, and at the same time the Treasurer could collect Business Permit-related taxes and fees. 

            In a previous article I talked about how Zamboanga City faces a considerable squatter problem. The City used to deny applications for Mayor’s Permits filed by business owners operating on squatted land. The Mayor decided to change this policy by allowing them sign a waiver. The waiver says three important things: a) that the applicant recognizes that he/she does not own the land; b) that he/she promises to vacate the property when required; and c) the Permit does not give him/her any tenurial rights to the land. 

            The latest innovation introduced by the Zamboanga City officials and employees is the use of Geographic Information System (G I S)       to map the location of business establishments. The City’s Management Information System (MIS) Department provides the operations and the equipment, while the Planning and assessor’s offices provided background data, such as the street map and barangay boundaries. The City Treasurer’s staff provides data on the location of commercial buildings and business establishments found in those buildings. The information system is used to provide maps and lists of business establishments to all enforcement agencies (e.g., City Health Department, Bureau of Fire Protection) so that they can conduct their routine inspections efficiently.

End.