Carla P. Gomez

May142021 by Carla P. GomezNo Comments

Negros, Bacolod to remain under MCGQ until end of May

Negros Island and Bacolod City will remain under Modified General Community Quarantine (MGCQ) from May 15 to 31, Presidential Spokesman Harry Roque said Friday, May 14.That is what the national Inter-Agency Task Force sees as the appropriate status for Negros Occidental so we will just follow it, Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson said.Negros Occidental had 23 new COVID-19 cases and Bacolod City had 78 on Friday, the Department of Health reported.The DOH said Negros Occidental has 2,239 active COVID-19 cases and Bacolod City has 981.Roque said President Rodrigo Duterte on Thursday, approved the recommendation of the IATF to place the National Capital Region, Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna and Rizal under General Community Quarantine (GCQ) with heightened restrictions from May 15 to 31.A...

May142021 by Carla P. GomezNo Comments

Negros Occidental DRRMCs still on heightened alert

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The Disaster Risk Reduction Management Councils in the 31 towns and cities of Negros Occidental remain on heightened alert even though tropical depression “Crising” has weakened into a low pressure area.Zeaphard Caelian, Provincial Disaster Management Program Division head, said Friday afternoon, May 14, that they remain on heightened alert against flooding that could be brought on by rains.Negros Occidental Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson directed all DRRMCs Friday morning to go on heightened alert against “Crising” and be pro-active.Heighten preparedness against flooding, landslides and flash floods, he said.*

May142021 by Carla P. GomezNo Comments

Burned 14-year-old in ICU needs help

Community

A 14-year-old daughter of a farm worker, who sustained third degree burns in a fire that hit a computer shop, needs help.Jesserie Garcia of Hacienda Maritaldan, Barangay Consing, EB Magalona in Negros Occidental is confined at the Intensive Care Unit of the Bacolod Queen of Mercy Hospital, and her family can no longer afford to pay her hospital bills, charity diva Token Lizares said Friday, May 14.When the 14-year-old was rushed to the hospital by concerned citizens the doctor said she had a 50-50 chance of living but she appears to be improving, her sister Jerrelyn Garcia Oro said.Garcia was in a computer shop in Barangay Consing when strong wind accompanied by rain and lighting toppled the bamboo post where the WiFi connection was attached. This caused it to hit a livewire th...

May142021 by Carla P. GomezNo Comments

Ceneco to review clearing work to prevent brownouts

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Central Negros Electric Cooperative will review whether to continue outsourcing its clearing operations in a move to lessen power interruptions in its coverage area.Danny Pondevilla, project supervisor and acting general manager of the Central Negros Electric Cooperative, said the clearing of tree branches and other obstructions hitting CENECO power lines had been contracted out.Brownouts are sometimes caused by tree branches that fall or hit power lines, especially when it rains, he said.Pondevilla said he is reviewing whether it would be more effective for CENECO to hire its own clearing crew rather than outsourcing the work.He has scheduled a meeting with the CENECO Engineering Department and the contractors to review their clearing accomplishments prior to payment.I...

May132021 by Carla P. GomezNo Comments

AFP chief for peace talks, says nobody wins a war

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Courtesy of Dolly YasaArmed Forces of the Philippines chief Gen. Cirilito Sobejana on Thursday, May 13, said “nobody wins a war” in response to Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson’s plan to create a local peace panel.Lacson on Wednesday said he would create a peace panel for talks with local Communist rebels.The peace panel will be a multi-sectoral body that will include the private sector, including the Church and the academe, Lacson said.This is in compliance with a national government directive and they will be guided by the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process, he said.Sobejana, who was in La Castellana, Negros Occidental, said: “I don’t think that war is the solution to the security problem”.“There are other dimensions and factors to be addressed, so th...

May132021 by Carla P. GomezNo Comments

Bacolod mass vaccination to initially start in 7 brgys

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Bacolod PIO photoThe Emergency Operations Center (EOC) will initially start the barangay mass vaccination against COVID-19 of health workers, senior citizens and persons with comorbidities in seven areas in Bacolod City on Friday, May 14, City Administrator Em Ang said Thursday night.They had initially targeted 21 barangays.The mass vaccination on Friday will be held at barangays 39, Villamonte, Mansilingan, Alijis, Punta Taytay, Mandalagan and at the Andres Bonifacio Elementary School in Barangay 3, said Ang, who is also EOC executive director.This will be held simultaneously with the mass vaccination at the SMX Convention Center and the Ayala Malls Capitol Central in Bacolod City, Ang said.Officials of 14 other barangays decided to start their mass vaccination on Mond...

May132021 by Carla P. GomezNo Comments

Negrense war hero honored in La Castellana

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Dolly Yasa photoArmed Forces chief Gen. Cirilito Sobejana led the unveiling of a bust in honor of a Negrense war hero at the Cabacungan Elementary School in La Castellana, Negros Occidental, Thursday morning, May 13.Honored was 1Lt. Lolinato To-ong Sr., a posthumous recipient of the Medal of Valor, the Philippines’ highest military award for courage.To-ong, a member of 39th Marine Company, was killed during an assault on heavily fortified bunkers of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front while providing suppressive fire to cover the medical evacuation of wounded fellow Marine personnel on April 30, 2000.Sobejana, who called To-ong a modern-day hero, said his sacrifice amidst the intense firefight against the MILF rebels prevented the enemies’ advance that saved the lives of his ...

May132021 by Carla P. GomezNo Comments

Bacolod councilor recovers from Covid

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Bacolod Councilor Dindo Ramos and his wife have recovered from COVID-19, his colleague said Thursday.Councilor Al Victor Espino said Ramos and his wife, Jean, had been discharged from the hospital.A source said the councilor, who had suffered from a severe case of COVID-19, was discharged Wednesday.Meanwhile, Bacolod City had 44 new COVID-19 cases Thursday for a total of 925 active cases, the Department of Health reported.Negros Occidental has 93 new COVID-19 cases for a total of 2,661 active cases, the DOH added.*

May122021 by Carla P. GomezNo Comments

DBM releases P500M for 25 rebel-cleared brgys in Negros

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Capitol photoThe P500 million fund for projects in 25 insurgency-cleared barangays in seven local government units in Negros Occidental has been download by the Department of Budget and Management and is ready for disposal.This was announced at the 2nd Quarter Joint Provincial Peace and Order Council - Provincial Anti-Drug Abuse Council (PPOC-PADAC) meeting chaired by Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson at the Capitol Social Hall in Bacolod City, Wednesday, April 12.Lacson said the insurgency-cleared barangays are receiving P20 million each under the Support to Barangay Development Program (BDP) of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC).The PPOC unanimously approved a resolution of Cadiz Mayor Salvador Escalante supporting the sustainability of the N...

May122021 by Carla P. GomezNo Comments

Guv issuing EO creating provincial peace panel

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Capitol photoNegros Occidental Gov. Eugenio Jose Lascon said Wednesday, May 12, that he is issuing an executive order creating a provincial peace panel for dialogs with Communist rebels.The peace panel will be a multi-sectoral body that will include the private sector, including the Church and the academe, Lacson said.This is in compliance with a national government directive and they will be guided by the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process, he said.This is one of the targets of the Duterte administration to end the Communist armed struggle on the local level, Lacson said.The panel is expected to hold exploratory dialogs with local Communist terrorist groups.The DILG has asked local government units in Negros Occidental to also submit the compos...