Carla P. Gomez

Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson has not given any instructions for the Negros Occidental provincial government to revert back to a five-day workweek, Provincial Administrator Rayfrando Diaz II said on Wednesday, May 13.He said under the four-day work week the provincial government employees have continued to carry out the work and serve the public.“I’m trying to get a feel from our employees on how they are performing under the four-day work week. What I heard is they can do more,” Diaz said.“In terms of delivery of services, I believe we’re equally efficient. There has been no delay, no one suffered among those being served by the province. If that is the barometer then, there is no difference,” Diaz said.The Capitol employees have said that having three days off from work...

The Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) turned over P14,882,710 worth of multi-functional power sprayers to beneficiaries from 193 block farms in the Visayas during rites held at the SRA–La Granja Agricultural Research and Extension Center in La Carlota City, Negros Occidental, on Tuesday, May 12. The distribution was led by SRA Administrator Pablo Luis Azcona and Sugar Board Member-Planter Representative Dave Sanson. Sanson said  protective gear was also distributed to ensure the safety of those using the equipment to apply insecticides.  He explained that the power sprayers are intended to strengthen sugarcane farm productivity and assist in the battle against the red-striped soft scale insect (RSSI), which can cause widespread damage to crops. ...

Crater glow or banaag at Kanlaon Volcano observed with the naked eye on Sunday evening could be a precursor to a magmatic eruption, a Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) official warned.“We are not taking any chances because at Mayon Volcano before it erupted there was also a crater glow,” Ma. Antonia Bornas, Phivolcs Volcano Monitoring and Eruption Prediction Division chief, said on Monday, May 11.Netizens on Sunday evening posted photos of a red glow at the crater of Kanlaon.Phivolcs will be observing Kanlaon for the next few evenings to determine if the crater glow becomes sustained and intensifies, which would mean that magma is close to or at the crater indicating increasing chances of magmatic unrest within days, Bornas said.This would th...

Five-day work weeks in the cities of Bacolod, Bago and Silay, and the municipality of Toboso resume this week.But the Negros Occidental provincial government will remain on a 4-day work week schedule, Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson said on Monday, March 11.The provincial government and the towns and cities of Negros Occidental shifted to 4-day work weeks in early March after President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. ordered its temporary implementation as part of the government’s efforts to conserve energy and reduce fuel use amid rising global oil prices triggered by the Middle East crisis.Lacson said that the Negros Occidental provincial government will maintain its 4-day work week for now.Lacson said he met with Department of the Interior and Local Government Secretary Jesus Vi...