Vendors Forced Out Before Sunrise as Market Tensions Boil Over

Tensions flared at the Michael Finnegan Market before sunrise this morning after several vendors were told to leave during a crackdown on market day rules. But while the city council says it is simply enforcing long-standing regulations, some farmers say the move is threatening their livelihood. Zenida Lanza was on the ground.

 

Placido Cunil, Retail Vendor

“What do you want to make me do? Go kill people for money and not make me sell my veggies too? Is that what they want? I worked hard to make my money. I don’t want to go and rob people.”

 

Zenida Lanza, Reporting

Before six o’clock this morning, retail vendors arriving at the Michael Finnegan Market were met by Belize City Council enforcement officers and told they could not sell on this day. Among those vendors is Placido Cunil, who has been selling here for the past six years without an issue.

 

Placido Cunil

“They say we have to follow procedures. But I done explain that my product can’t sell on Saturdays, only on Tuesdays and Fridays. So how am I going to sell my product? How? If they don’t allow me to go in the market. They say that only wholesale is supposed to be today, but they are doing retail, people are doing retail. So this is not fair for us.”

 

According to the city council, Cunil is one of four vendors removed from this location because they were not officially listed as wholesalers. He was not alone in his frustration.

 

Voice of: Retail Vendor

“Everybody here, we need to sell. We just want to sell. Because people have family, I have a special daughter. Let’s stand up for our rights. Come. Look at this. Retail. Wholesale is by sack, by bucket, not pounds. They sell the lies right here, only wholesale. But look what’s happening.”

 

Voice of: Retail Vendor

“This didn’t just happen. I’ve been here about 25 years and they never did that. And all of us are family. We have to do something.”

 

Voice of: Retail Vendor

“We need the government to get a place for us, for the farmers, so that we can sell our products. because we are the farmers that they are trying to harass. You see me, I came with my truck and I can’t come and sell my product.” 

 

Voice of: Retail Vendor

“On the list, they have my name that I sell retail. So today I started to sell wholesale and they said I can’t do that, so they picked up my stuff and put in back in the sack.”

 

Market Manager Delroy Herrera responded directly, saying all vendors still operating were registered wholesalers and that the council was not acting aggressively, but finally enforcing a long-ignored process.

 

Delroy Herrera, Market Manager, Belize City Council

“We have stepped up slightly the enforcement aspect of the market day. Again, like I said to you yesterday, we are not ruling or doing enforcement with an iron fist. But we have stepped it up where we have brought out the listing for the wholesalers. And what we did this morning is that we, again, through our education process for the retailers. We only have four retailers who still insist on coming on the market day for wholesalers. What is happening, I think there is a misunderstanding of what the full intention of wholesale is. And wholesale is actually buying the maximum quantity that you can at the least possible price. And the retailers would then capitalize on that.”

 

Herrera pointed us to one vendor who made the switch. Just a day earlier, Abner Cienfuegos was a retail seller. After going through the registration process, he came back Tuesday as a wholesaler and said the change made an immediate difference.

 

Abner Cienfuegos, Wholesaler

“In all honesty, as a wholesale farmer, today has been actually one of the best days I’ve had in a long time. Without the competition of retailing, and prices going up and down, fluctuating, we can come in and sell our stuff at the price that we can see best for ourselves, and we get it out there.”

 

Reporter

“The retailers are saying that the wholesalers are selling as retail, as well? All right, so what is wholesale and what is retail?”

 

Abner Cienfuegos

“Is it based off of amount or based off of price? We were confirmed that it’s based off of price, right? We were confirmed that it’s based off of price, right? Because you come in and you want plantain for $100 for $30, that’s $3 for $1. That’s still wholesale price. Yes, we might sell one pound or two pounds, but we’re selling it at the same bare minimum price as what you would buy for a big bulk. So we’re still wholesaling, it’s just that we’re wholesaling at a smaller rate.”

 

Another wholesaler who was asked to leave on Saturday says that once the rules were explained to him, he was willing to comply.

 

Reporter

“Do you plan to come on Saturdays going forward?”

 

Herman Freisen, Wholesaler

“No, we are planning on stopping on come Saturday. If we can sell Tuesday and Friday, then we’re good.”

 

But the question remains for Cunil, who says Chinese vegetables are a niche product with a very specific customer base that only comes to market on Tuesdays and Fridays. The concern is whether he would be able to continue making a living.

 

Delroy Herrera

“It’s not that we are forcing Mr. Cunil that he cannot sell whatever the case may be. If Mr. Cunil is bringing the quantum that he says he is and the suppliers that he have. Then it’s a quick fix. What we do is get a copy of your social security, or any valid ID. So we know who is at the market. So if anything happens in the market and so forth. We know you are a vendor of the market and stuff like that. So we have a documentation for you.”

 

And that quick fix came through. A little after eight this morning, Cunil spoke with the City Council team, handed over his identification documents, and was registered as a wholesale seller. He was back inside the market before nine. Reporting for New Five, I am Zenida Lanza.

 

Attention readers: This online newscast is a direct transcript of our evening television broadcast. When speakers use Kriol, we have carefully rendered their words using a standard spelling system.

 

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