BUSINESSES in Cagayan de Oro City have recorded 10-15 percent revenue loss following two days of no work due the nationwide transport strike, an official of the Cagayan de Oro Chamber of Commerce and
Industry Foundation Inc. (Oro Chamber) said.
Robert Pizarro, Oro Chamber president, said compared to a regular Monday working day, businesses in the city, such as hotel and restaurant businesses, had a loss of 10 to 15 percent in their income or revenues.
Pizarro said the reason for the loss is due to the "sudden declaration of no work in government and most of the private companies also declared no work, classes in all levels were canceled," there were losses in food consumption and the cancellation of hotel and restaurant meetings.
He said these chain reaction produced by the transport strike lowered the people traffic in the city, adding that most residents decided to stay home.
On Sunday, October 15, MalacaƱang announced the suspension of classes in both public and private high schools and work in all government offices nationwide due to the two-day transport strike.
The nationwide transport strike was to protest against the phasing out of public utility jeepneys and to ask government to put on hold the implementation of the Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program
(PUVMP).
The PUVMP, which was officially launched by the Department of Transportation on June 19, seeks to phase out old and dilapidated jeepneys and replace them with environment-friendly and efficiently driven transport systems.
The new program was deemed a solution to address the worsening traffic situation in the country.
On Monday, October 16, the Provincial Government of Misamis Oriental deployed its vehicles to ferry stranded commuters for free while the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board provided buses for the same purpose.
The capitol has also facilitated help to some 1,621 stranded commuters.
On Tuesday, public transportation in Cagayan de Oro was back to normal.