Work suspended in parts of Metro Manila on April 27-28

(Editor’s note: This story has been updated to reflect Malacañang’s clarification to an earlier statement by an official that April 27 and 28 are holidays.)

(Updated, 2:09 p.m., April 21) Malacañang on Friday ordered the suspension of work  Metro Manila next week in time for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) Summit in Pasay City.

Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea made the declaration by authority of President Rodrigo Duterte through Memorandum Circular No 18.

The memorandum said all government offices in the cities of Manila, Makati and Pasay would have non-working day on April 27, Thursday.

It added that government and private offices in Metro Manila would have a non-working day on April 28, Friday.

Suspension of work on April 29, Saturday, it said, was left to the discretion of the affected local  government units (LGUs) and employers.

Classes in public and private schools on all levels in Metro Manila are also suspended on April 28 while suspension of classes in the cities of Pasay, Makati and Manila on April 27 will be left to the discretion of their school heads.

Malacañang earlier said that April 27 to 28 would be non-working holidays but later corrected that it would only be non-working days on the said dates.

The Asean Summit and Related meetings will be held from April 26-29 at the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC) in Pasay City. Leaders of the nine other member-states of the Asean and diplomats are expected to attend the summit. IDL/rga