Ozamiz LCE lauds Pres. Aquino for creation of Task Force Panguil

By Rutchie C. Aguhob

Saturday 7th of July 2012

OZAMIZ CITY, Misamis Occidental, July 7 (PIA) -- The city mayor has thanked President Benigno S. Aquino III for creating Task Force Panguil that resulted in an improved business confidence in the city.

“We are thankful to President Aquino for creating Joint Task Force Panguil, as it has beefed up local law enforcement and crime-fighting capacity, hence, improved the city’s business confidence,” Mayor Nova E. Princess E. Parojinog-Echavez said during the State of the City Address (SOCA) she delivered recently.

It is encouraging to note that the city’s criminality, as measured by the incidence of index crimes, went down by 20 percent, from 575 cases in 2009 to only 457 cases in 2011, the mayor said, noting that apart from maintaining peace and order, business confidence must also be maintained so more investment flows can be seen.

“Our strong logistical support to the local police has borne fruit and relative to this, I am happy to announce that the Php5 million pesos for the Ozamiz City Police Station (OCPS) Headquarters is now up for bidding by the Philippine National Police (PNP), region 10,” she said.

She said P91.72 million in private investments flowed into the local economy since July 2011. The biggest of these investments was by the Unitop Corp., which is developing and leasing an extension of the public mall, on top of which is an additional P32 million that generated 119 jobs and a total annual rental of P5 million.

The other big investments are the P23 million Gaisano Southwing Mall and the P20 million Mitsubishi Showroom and Service Center.

Significant flows into real estate development have also been started by Mediatrix Homes, which could reach a billion pesos, while Camella Homes is currently doing a perimeter survey for a future project site.

Filinvest and Ayala Land-affiliate Villabeta are looking for viable areas in the city, the Mayor added. (PIA-10 Mis. Occ.)