Pasayeños for Justice and Accountability (PJA) condemned the Pasay City Philippine National Police for illegally detaining three residents dubbed as Wowee Market 3.
Police arrested two vendors and a senior citizen who were protesting the market’s closure at the Pasay City Hall on March 23. The vendors are members of the Wowee Market Vendors Association. The protesters were demanding the immediate reopening of the market arbitrarily shut down by Mayor Emi Calixto on December 19, 2025.
The three have been detained for more than 48 hours without any charges filed against them.
According to PJA, the Pasay LGU seems to deliberately extend the residents’ detention throughout the Holy Week. The group said their detention is clearly illegal and serves as a way to persecute the vendors.
“What the Pasay LGU fails to understand is that every time they repress the people, they only inflame the determination of vendors and workers to fight for their rights,” the group declared.
