A TOTAL of 35 establishments in Northern Mindanao have declared closure, of which 23 are in Cagayan de Oro, National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) Regional Director Mylah Faye Aurora Cariño said.
Cariño said 181 establishments in the region have also reported to the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) that they have retrenched or reduced their workforce, 117 are from Cagayan de Oro City.
"At the moment, ang Cagayan de Oro is very active in preparing ang ilang local recovery program, which actually is aligned with the regional recovery program," Cariño said, adding that meetings are being conducted every week to discuss the concerns of the businessmen in the city.
The Neda regional director added that businesses are part of the city's weekly meeting, which gives them the opportunity to discuss with Mayor Oscar Moreno about the business hour operations in line with the implementation of curfew in the city.
"Hibalo ko nga ang atong mga negosyante sa Cagayan de Oro are represented in this meeting," Cariño said.
"I'm hoping that they are going to take advantage of this weekly meetings nga mahisgutan ang ilang mga concerns because I know that Mayor Oscar Moreno and even the Sanggunian they are open for discussions og unsaon pagtabang sa atong mga establishimento," she added.
Moreno, earlier this week, said he is not in favor of the Department of Trade and Industry's (DTI's) request for local government units to adjust curfew hours up to midnight as he does not want to compromise the public health.
"There has to be a good balance sa health and the economy. Nakasabot ako ang DTI interesado nga makabangon ang atong ekonomiya. Everybody else wants the economy to recover," Moreno said.