In an effort to make the business permit application process stress-free, the Baguio City Council has passed a resolution requesting all offices and departments of the city government involved in the issuance of business permits to review their office mandates to prevent duplication of functions.
This is after Danilo Quinto, a concerned citizen, sought an audience with the city council to bring up his observations and personal experience in securing a business permit.
Quinto said the process is “cumbersome, burdensome, and tedious,” causing unnecessary stress to applicants.
As identified during the council’s regular session last Monday, one factor that makes the process onerous is the duplication of functions of offices and departments involved in the issuance of a business permit.
The offices and departments issuing certificates of clearance for the acquisition of a business permit are the City Planning and Development Office (CPDO), City Buildings and Architecture Office (CBAO), City Environment and Parks Management Office, the Baguio Fire Department (, and Permits and Licensing Division of the City Mayor’s Office.
Business permit application starts at the CPDO, which issues the locational clearance after checking the applicant’s compliance with the zoning ordinance.
Arch. Donna Tabangin, CPDO chief, said some of her office’s functions are similar with the functions of the CBAO because certain provisions of the zoning ordinance were copied from the National Building Code of the Philippines which is the basis of the CBAO for issuing certificates of occupancy and building permits.
Tabangin said she will work with other department heads to “make sure that their duties and responsibilities are well-defined” and that duplication of functions will be eliminated.
She added the Covid-19 pandemic has affected the productivity of her office and therefore she appealed to the applicants to be more patient and understanding.
Nevertheless, she assured the application process will become simpler and less stressful once the offices have fully completed the digitization of all systems where all offices involved in the process are interconnected, which will allow clients to track the progress of their application online. – Jordan G. Habbiling
