Business

The sugar industry meet at the SRA office in Bacolod on Monday.* Sugar industry stakeholders in a rare show of unity on Monday gathered at the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) office in Bacolod City to come up with solutions to problems plaguing the industry. Aside from the urgent need to control the entry of artificial sweeteners and sugar substitutes, the group reached a consensus to urge the national government to revisit and implement a modified version of the sugar-buying program from two years ago, SRA Administrator Pablo Azcona said on Tuesday, March 10. At that time, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. had approved a ₱5 billion budget for the initiative following requests from Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel and Azcona, allowing the government to purchase a specific p...

Mayor Greg Gasataya signing the executive order implementing the four-day workweek, in Bacolod City.* BCCO photo Mayor Greg Gasataya on Tuesday, March 10, ordered the implementation of a compressed four-day work week for the Bacolod City government aimed at cushioning the impact of volatile global fuel prices and reducing the city’s energy footprint. Starting March 16, city government offices will transition to a 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday-to-Thursday work schedule, Gasataya said in Executive Order 015, Series of 2026. The compressed work schedule shall ensure compliance with the prescribed 40 hours per workweek, he said. Gasataya said offices and departments providing essential and frontline services — such as the City Health Office, City Disaster Risk Reduction a...

The sugar industry stakeholders meeting at the SRA office in Bacolod City on Monday.*Sugar millers and planters groups on Tuesday, March 10, called for stronger government support for locally produced biofuels as a practical defense against global oil volatility and surging fuel prices triggered by unrest in the Middle East.The Philippine Sugar Millers Association (PSMA) and the Confederation of Sugar Producers Association (CONFED ), in a press statement, said the use of domestic bioethanol in gasoline blending reduces dependence on imported petroleum, helping stabilize pump prices while keeping a portion of fuel expenditures circulating within the Philippine economy.PSMA and CONFED agreed to jointly urge government towards this direction after meeting with other ind...

Deputy Speaker Raymond Democrito  Mendoza (TUCP Partylist) and Roland de la Cruz, NACUSIP TUCP president,  (l-r) hold up copies of House Bill No. 8376 after it was filed on Monday.* In a move to dismantle decades of exclusion, a bill has been filed in the House of Representatives to include representatives of sugar field, sugar mill, and ethanol mill workers, consumer groups and agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) in the Sugar Board. House Bill No. 8376 filed Monday, March 9, seeks to amend the charter of the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) to expand the Sugar Board to give the workers, consumers and ARB beneficiaries their rightful voice in decision-making, Roland C. de la Cruz. president of the National Congress of Unions in the Sugar Ind...

Long lines of vehicles were seen at gasoline stations in Bacolod on Monday ahead of the scheduled new round of fuel price hikes on Tuesday.*Andrew Altarejos photoNegros Occidental Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson on Monday appealed to the consciences of gasoline station owners not to take advantage of the current situation, amid reports that some retailers had already raised their prices ahead of the scheduled adjustment on Tuesday, March 10.He said while the Department of Energy (DOE) said that the country had a two-month fuel inventory when the Middle East crisis began on Feb. 28, large price hikes took effect right away.Long lines of vehicles were seen at gasoline stations in Bacolod on Monday ahead of the scheduled new round of fuel price hikes on Tuesday.Some gasoline station...

Gov. Manuel “Chaco” Sagarbarria orders a four-day workweek at the Negros Oriental provincial government.*.The Negros Oriental provincial government began implementing its four-day compressed workweek starting Monday, March 9, to support the national government’s energy conservation efforts and to mitigate the impact of the rising fuel prices brought on by the Middle East conflict. The new Negros Oriental provincial government work schedule is from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday to Thursday, Gov. Manuel “Chaco” Sagarbarria said in Executive Order No. 28 , Series of 2026. Mayors of more local government units in Negros Occidental also announced on Monday, March 9, that they are implementing the compressed four-day workweeks. The areas implementing the new work schedules are Escalante City, Cadiz...

The Bacolod City government is studying the possibility of granting additional fuel subsidies to public utility jeepney (PUV) and tricycle drivers to cushion the effect of price increases brought on by the Middle East crisis, Mayor Greg Gasataya said on Monday, March 9.The possible city government subsidy would be on top of the amounts to be granted by the national government, he said.Department of Transportation has announced that is preparing a ₱3.5-billion transport subsidy package that includes ₱2.5 billion earmarked for fuel vouchers and another ₱1 billion for a Service Contracting Program to fund "Libreng Sakay" initiatives.Gasataya said they are still determining the number of PUJ drivers in Bacolod based on data from the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory B...

The Philippine National Police–Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PNP–PDEA) Regional Top 1 drug target was arrested during a buy-bust operation in Barangay 4, Hinigaran, Negros Occidental, on Saturday night, March 7.Authorities identified the suspect as alias “Toy-toy,” 39, a resident of Osmeña Street, Barangay 4, Hinigaran.Authorities seized about 54 grams of suspected shabu with an estimated standard drug price of P367,200 during the operation conducted along Coroña Street.The operation was carried out by the Provincial Drug Enforcement Unit of the Negros Occidental Police Provincial Police Office with support from the Hinigaran Municipal Police Station and the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency–Negros Island Region.Operatives recovered one heat-sealed plastic sachet of...

Capitol employees will only have to report for work from Tuesday to Friday,*Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson on Saturday ordered the implementation of a compressed four-day workweek for the provincial government of Negros Occidental starting March 16 to mitigate the impact of rising fuel costs. The ongoing Middle East tensions have led to significant volatility in global energy markets, resulting in the rising cost of fuel that impacts the national economy, Lacson said. Fuel prices in the Philippines are expected to rise sharply on Tuesday, with the Department of Energy initially estimating increases of P19 per liter for diesel, P9 for gasoline, and P31 for kerosene. Under Executive Order No. 26-05 issued Saturday, Lacson said provincial offices and departments ...

Mayor Greg Gasataya is set to consult with department and office heads on Monday, March 9, on the possibility of the Bacolod City government’s implementing a 4-day work week, in line with the directive of Pres. Ferdinand Marcos, Jr., City Administrator Mark Mayo said on Monday.Meanwhile, Gasataya has directed all city government offices to immediately roll out comprehensive energy and fuel efficiency measures amid rising fuel prices driven by unrest in the Middle East.In an executive order signed on February 13 and effective immediately, office administrative officers were mandated to limit air-conditioning usage to six hours daily, with a maximum extension of eight hours at the agency head’s discretion.Where practical, thermostats must not exceed 24°C, and units should be s...