By Jordan G. Habbiling
COUNCILOR Michael Lawana, president of the Liga ng mga Barangay, has introduced an ordinance requiring all state lessors to register their tenants in their respective barangays for the safety and protection of lessors, other tenants, and the community at large.
The councilor said the mandatory registration of tenants will deter individuals with evil intent from committing crimes against the unsuspecting owners and other boarders as they are aware that information about them is duly recorded.
“The proposed ordinance aims to identify and profile all tenants in the Areas of Responsibilities (AOR) of the Baguio City Police Office (BCPO) as a tool for crime prevention and solution,” Lawana said.
Once approved, the measure shall be known as the “Tenant Ko, Kilala Ko” Ordinance of Baguio City.
The ordinance shall apply to all owners of inns, motels, condominiums, townhouses, apartments, condotels, transient houses, and boarding houses/dormitories.
Under the ordinance, lessors/landlords/owners shall be required to record basic details of their individual tenants through the Tenant Data Form.
The lessors shall also interview applicants before accepting them as “bona fide tenants.”
An applicant shall be required to show proof of identity and to fill-up the Tenant Data Form.
The information to be provided shall be limited to the tenant’s/applicant’s name, complete address, nationality, contact number, and signature. A valid ID must also be presented.
All collected data sheets shall be submitted to the barangay to be stored in a database. A database system shall be prepared by the barangay for easy monitoring and shall be discarded after six months.
The proposal noted that, in the event of a consummated crime where the owner has failed to provide the needed data form of the tenant, they shall be fined P3,000.00 for the first offense, P4,000.00 for the second offense, and P5,000.00 for the third offense.
“In the event of a consummated crime committed by a registered tenant, his/her detailed Tenant Data Form shall be made available to be used by the case investigator in the conduct of investigation,” Lawana explained.
Lawana stressed that the primary concerns of the BCPO are the maintenance of peace and order in the city, the campaign against criminality, insurgency, and other related threats and forms of violence, and the assurance the city remains a safe place for residents and visitors alike.
The proposal was approved on first reading and was referred to the appropriate committee for further study.
