Cockpit arena to take slaughterhouse’s place?

MANILA, Philippines — Residents of Manila and some local officials are up in arms over the demolition of the Vitas Slaughterhouse in Tondo and the construction of a cockpit arena in its place.

The construction of the cockpit arena poses a lot of problems, according to local officials, and it does not have any legal basis.

“How sure are they that this will pass through the city council? Is this a prearranged proposition? The farthest it got was on first reading. There was no public hearing and there were no committee reports… sobra naman lakas nila (they’re very influential),” a visibly irked Third District Councilor Grace Chua told The STAR.

Dealco Farms Inc., owned by the family of Manila Traffic and Parking Bureua (MTPB) chief and former councilor Dennis Alcoreza, runs the slaughterhouse and has reportedly forged ties with a group of investors to put up the cockpit arena.

“Which is more important, a cockpit arena or the slaughterhouse? Now businessmen have to cross nearby cities like Caloocan and Malabon to have their livestocks slaughtered? This is preposterous,” said First District Councilor Marjun Isidro.

Isidro emphasized that without a council resolution, the construction of the cockpit arena is illegal.

“Under the local government code, only the city council has the power to approve construction of such facilities and we are empowered to check other activities that may prove to be inimical to the welfare and morals of the inhabitants of the city so where did they get the authority?” she said, adding that the idea is pure “folly.”

Alcoreza, who is known to be a loyal supporter of Mayor Joseph Estrada, had a brush with former mayor Alfredo Lim in 2008 when the latter ordered the takeover of the slaughterhouse after Dealco Farms reportedly violated its 25-year lease contract with the city by failing to modernize it even if it was clearly stated in the contract.

Among the violations cited by Lim’s Executive Order 24 were Dealco’s dumping of animal manure into Manila Bay and its failure to install enough sanitary facilities. 

It took at least four policemen to bodily evict Alcoreza out of the building, which ended when his sister allegedly bit and stabbed a policeman with a pen.

Manila entered into a lease contract with Dealco on Oct. 11, 1999 to rehabilitate, modernize and operate the 22,000-square meter slaughterhouse.

Erap furious?

A source inside city hall said Estrada became furious after learning that a cockpit arena was being constructed on the site “because he was made to believe that a sports complex was being built there.”

“They tried to put one over the mayor. This is not what he wanted,” said a source who requested not to be named.

Among the campaign promises of Estrada when he ran in 2013 was the creation of a multi-purpose sporting facility that “Manileños could be proud of,” the source said.

“Estrada was taken for a ride by Alcoreza and his group and now an order has been given to stop the construction,” the source added.

The STAR tried to reach Alcoreza but his staff said he was unavailable – that Sunday was his rest day.