Rent freeze for small, medium biz tenants sought

THE Bacolod City Council approved a resolution requesting malls and building owners to have a moratorium in collecting rentals from their small and medium business tenants, who are temporarily closed or under limited operation due to the modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ) in Bacolod City, until the end of the year to allow them to recover.

The resolution, authored by Councilor Simplicia Distrito, was approved during the regular session of the City Council on Wednesday, September 16, 2020.

Distrito said on September 7, 2020, the National Inter-Agency Task Force (NIATF) issued Resolution No. 69-A that placed the City of Bacolod under a modified enhanced community quarantine from September 8 to 30, 2020, due to the increase of coronavirus disease (Covid-19) cases.

As a result, she said that Mayor Evelio Leonardia issued Executive Order No. 60 in pursuant to the resolution of the NIATF.

Distrito noted the implementation of the MECQ required the use of Home Quarantine Pass, suspended public transportation and prohibited the operation of most businesses in the City of Bacolod.

“The closure of businesses due to the recent quarantine protocol imposed severely affected the income of our small and medium businesses who are mostly tenants in malls and buildings,” Distrito said.

She said the Sanggunian had previously passed a resolution for all lessors in the city to consider the situation of businesses, particularly the micro, small and medium businesses, to address the impact of the imposition of the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ).

“This time, it is also fitting to reiterate such a request given that the city is under MECQ and that most of these businesses were not yet able to recover the impact when ECQ was implemented,” she added.

Distrito disclosed that given the situation, it is best to set the moratorium until the end of the year to consider the plight of businesses and to give them time to recover from their losses.

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