By Filane Mikee Cervantes/Philippine News Agency
MANILA — Senator Joel Villanueva on Monday urged the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) to monitor the existence of establishments and businesses that only cater to Chinese nationals and prohibit Filipinos from entering their premises.
Villanueva, chair of the Senate committee on labor, employment, and human resources development, said the DTI should also ensure that all establishments adhere to the prevailing laws and regulations in the country.
“All establishments whether MSMEs (micro, small, and medium enterprises) or large corporations, must comply with our laws on nationality, such as the Retail Trade Law and the MSME Law,” Villanueva told reporters in a text message.
Senator Aquilino Pimentel III, meanwhile, said these Chinese-only establishments must be closed down for discriminating against Filipinos, which he said is a violation of the Constitution.
The Bill of Rights in the 1987 Constitution guarantees equal protection for every Filipino.
“Business firms operating in the Philippines are not allowed to discriminate. Limiting customers to Chinese people only is a form of discrimination,” Pimentel said.
Pimentel stressed that the law must be enforced evenly.
“If Filipino-owned business establishments are not allowed to do this, then all the more foreign-owned businesses here in the Philippines should not be allowed to do what Filipinos cannot do under the law,” Pimentel said.
“This form of discrimination, it is directed against the Filipino. The Filipino is the victim of the discrimination,” he added.
A restaurant called China Food City in Alabang has received online backlash after it supposedly barred Filipinos from entering its premises.
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