Mary Judaline Partlow

Mayor Felipe Antonio Remollo ordered the tightening of border controls in Dumaguete City after African swine fever (ASF) cases were reported in another town.Dwight Arnaiz Sr., the officer-in-charge of the city agriculture office, said ASF checkpoints have been set up at key entry and exit points in Dumaguete after swine deaths were reported in neighboring Sibulan town.Police and barangay officials have been tapped to ensure that pigs coming from Sibulan and Dauin, where the province’s first ASF cases were reported, do not enter Dumaguete.“Pigs that come from these towns are not allowed in Dumaguete while those from other towns and cities may enter the city provided they have a certification from their city or municipal veterinary offices that they are ASF-free,” he said,Arn...

PNP Chief PGen Benjamin Acorda Jr. during his visit to Negros Oriental takes a look at illegal and loose firearms recovered by the police in various operations.*Mary Judaline Partlow photoThe planned mass relief of all Philippine National Police (PNP) personnel in Negros Oriental as part of “cleansing the ranks” following the assassination of Gov. Roel Degamo, has been put on hold, a key official said on Saturday, May 20.Brig. Gen. Anthony Aberin, Police Regional Office-Central Visayas (PRO-7) director, made the announcement during a multi-sectoral stakeholders’ engagement at the Negros Oriental Police Provincial Office (NOPPO) as part of the command visit of PNP chief Gen. Benjamin Acorda Jr.“The massive replacement of NOPPO police officers is currently on hold,” Aberin said. ...

Negros Oriental reported its first case of African Swine Fever (ASF) after blood samples collected from pigs in Barangay Maayong Tubig in Dauin tested positive for the virus.*PNA photoAuthorities are now scrambling to contain the spread of the deadly African swine fever (ASF) after Negros Oriental reported its first case in Barangay Maayong Tubig, Dauin town over the weekend.Provincial Board Member Woodrow Maquiling, chairman of the committee on agriculture, said on Monday, May 22, that culling of pigs within a radius of 500 meters from the ASF-affected area is ongoing.At least 265 had been culled since Sunday, Maquiling said.“Provincial Veterinary Office (PVO) chief Belinda Villahermosa said in a meeting this morning that around 265 pigs were already culled since Sunday as...

Police process the crime scene where a farmer was shot dead by New People's Army rebels in Guihulngan City, Negros Oriental on Saturday afternoon, May 20.*PNP photoA farmer in Guihulngan City, Negros Oriental, was shot and killed by suspected members of the New People’s Army (NPA) after he reportedly withdrew his support from the insurgency movement, a police official said on Sunday, May 21.The 47-year-old victim, Eduardo Antiquando Balansag, a resident of Sitio Mansalukon in Barangay Calupaan, was killed Saturday afternoon at his residence by four armed men who claimed to be NPA members.Lt. Col. Romeo Cubo, Guihulngan City police chief, said the suspects shouted “Mabuhay ang NPA (Long live the NPA)” before they fled.Cubo said the strongest possible motive for the killing w...

A man was injured when a fire of unknown origin broke out at a residential compound in Barangay Bantayan in Dumaguete City on Tuesday.*A man was hurt in a fire of still unknown origin that destroyed residential homes and a warehouse in Barangay Bantayan in Dumaguete City on Tuesday, May 9.An initial report from the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) said they received a callout at around 12:35 p.m. regarding the fire.City fire marshal, Chief Insp. Marlon Chomling, said the blaze spread so fast and was difficult to contain due to the presence of highly flammable materials such as paint and thinner.“We had to call in help from the other fire stations and private volunteer groups and used foam to douse the fire as it would only get bigger with water,” he said.Initially, at le...

Fredelino Cafe Jr. *A man who survived the gruesome massacre in Pamplona, Negros Oriental, where Gov. Roel Degamo and eight others were killed has died due to gunshot wound infections and complications.Provincial Health Officer Dr. Liland Estacion told the Philippine News Agency on Monday, May 8, that Fredelino Cafe Jr. succumbed to sepsis on Sunday, two weeks after his last admission to the Negros Oriental Provincial Hospital (NOPH) in Dumaguete City.“He developed an infection due to his gunshot wounds so I advised him to be admitted to the hospital,” Estacion said.Cafe, 52, of Sibulan, Negros Oriental, and an employee of the provincial government, was one of the 17 victims who were wounded when armed men attacked the Degamo residential compound in Pamplona town.Estaci...

A victim of the Pamplona massacre* Mary Judaline Partlow photoSurvivors and the families of those who died in the mass shooting in Pamplona, Negros Oriental, where Governor Roel Degamo was killed will finally get psychological and stress interventions that would help them cope with the traumatic experience.Three to five psychiatrists from Cebu will render their services to the survivors and families of those killed in the March 6 mass shooting, said Provincial Health Office (PHO) chief Liland Estacion, who herself was a victim of the incident.“Around three to five psychiatrists from Cebu are coming this weekend to cater to the needs of the massacre victims so they can cope with the post-attack behavioral, physical, psychological, and emotional stress,” she said on Thursday, Apr...

Witnesses in the death of Governor Roel Degamo and other unsolved killings in the province board a C-130 Air Force plane bound for Negros Oriental on Friday*The Negros Oriental Police Provincial Office (NOPPO) assured Friday, April 21, the safety of witnesses in the Senate hearing on the assassination of Governor Roel Degamo and other killings in the province.“Regardless of their political affiliation or background, we will be doing our best, with the help of the military, to keep them safe,” Col. Alex Guce Recinto, NOPPO provincial director, said.At least 60 people, including the governor’s widow, Pamplona Mayor Janice Degamo, arrived at the airport in Sibulan, Negros Oriental, from Metro Manila onboard a Philippine Air Force C-130 aircraft Friday morning.The group left Ne...

Police investigators at the scene of the crime in a remote village in Guihulngan City.*PNP photoSuspected members of the New People’s Army shot and killed two civilians in the mountainous Barangay Trinidad in Guihulngan City, Negros Oriental, close to midnight Tuesday, April 18.The victims were identified as Juven Patagatay Pasinabo, 24, of Barangay Trinidad, and Jinny Boy Rapol Tubias, 29, of Barangay Montilla, Moises Padilla in Negros Occidental.Reports said the two victims were attending a fiesta celebration in the remote Sitio Cambairan in Barangay Trinidad, around 42 kilometers away from the city proper, when four armed men believed to be NPA rebels, arrived.Two of the suspects approached Pasinabo, who was sitting in a chair, and shot him several times.The suspects...

Witnesses to the Pamplona massacre board a Philippine Air Force C-130 aircraft bound for Manila at the Dumaguete-Sibulan airport led by Pamplona Mayor Janice Degamo* Judy Partlow photoWitnesses to the Pamplona massacre and other killings in Negros Oriental departed for Manila on Saturday, April 15, two days ahead of a Senate hearing and the Department of Justice (DOJ) preliminary investigation into the gunslay of Governor Roel Degamo and eight others last month.The group of about 40 people, led by Pamplona Mayor Janice Degamo, the slain governor’s wife, boarded a Philippine Air Force C-130 aircraft at the Dumaguete-Sibulan airport at about 10:30 a.m.They are scheduled to attend the Senate Committee on Public Order and Dangerous Drugs hearing on Monday and the DOJ proceedings, D...