Negros Oriental

The Police Regional Office-Negros Island Region deployed 1,650 personnel across Negros Island for the observance of Ninoy Aquino Day on Friday, Aug. 21.PRO-NIR said personnel are positioned in strategic areas, including transportation hubs, major thoroughfares, public places and locations where increased movement or gatherings were expected.The security deployment includes mobile, motorcycle and foot patrols, traffic assistance, checkpoints, border control operations and Reactionary Standby Support Forces.Police units were also directed to maintain heightened visibility, monitor public areas and respond to security concerns during the observance.PRO-NIR said it coordinated with local government units, other law enforcement agencies, force multipliers and stakeholders for se...

Education Secretary Sonny Angara (3rd from left, seated) meets with school administrators, teachers, and learner representatives to discuss safety protocols and other program implementation at the Bais City National High School in Negros Oriental on Thursday.*DepEd OSEC photoThe Department of Education (DepEd) on Thursday, August 20,  further advanced nationwide security boost and campus safety, reaching public schools even in the Negros Island Region (NIR).Education Secretary Sonny Angara visited public schools in the NIR to assess campus safety protocols and evaluate the implementation of DepEd programs following Tuesday morning’s tragic shooting incident at the Ateneo de Zamboanga University. Angara visited Bais City National High School, the largest secondary scho...

Police are deployed at the gate of the Negros Oriental State University in Bais City, Negros Oriental, following an alleged threat on Wednesday *PNP photoTwo schools in Bais City, Negros Oriental, suspended classes on Wednesday, Aug. 19, after separate threats circulated through social media and text messages, police said.Capt. Stephen Polinar, spokesperson of the Negros Oriental Police, said the Negros Oriental State University (NORSU) - Bais campus and the Bais National High School evacuated students, teachers, and other personnel as a precaution.“The Bais City Police, together with the local government and school administrators, immediately conducted verification and deployed field training personnel or police recruits to the campuses,” Polinar said.He said the police re...

Gov. Manuel “Chaco” Sagarbarria*Negros Oriental Gov. Manuel “Chaco” Sagarbarria has ordered a province-wide review and strengthening of security measures in and around schools following the shooting at the Ateneo de Zamboanga University campus that left two students dead on Tuesday, Aug. 18.In a statement, Sagarbarria directed concerned provincial offices to coordinate with the Philippine National Police, Department of Education, component cities and municipalities, and school administrators to assess existing security arrangements and emergency response procedures.The governor said the review should cover school access and security protocols, coordination with law enforcement and local authorities, security visibility where necessary, and preparedness for emergencies.“We m...

Five residential structures were destroyed by a fire in Poblacion 1, or Tinago, Dumaguete City on Monday morning, Aug. 17, the Bureau of Fire Protection said.The Dumaguete City Fire Station received the report at around 11:35 a.m. and dispatched firefighters a minute later.Firefighters arrived at the area at around 11:37 a.m., with the fire already fully developed.The blaze was raised to third alarm at around 11:39 a.m. by Dumaguete City Fire Marshal Chief Insp. Erwin Johannes Gimotea.The BFP said four two-storey houses and one one-storey residential structure were involved in the fire.The fire was placed under control at around 11:58 a.m. and was declared out at 12:07 p.m.No casualties or injuries were reported.Firefighters from Dumaguete, Sibulan, Valencia, Ba...

The ECT payout in Mabinay Saturday.*DSWD NIR photoThe Department of Social Welfare and Development has begun distributing emergency cash transfers (ECT) to small farmers in Negros Oriental whose sugarcane crops were damaged by Red-Stripe Soft Scale Insects (RSSI), DSWD Regional Director Arwin Razo said Monday, August 17.Distribution of P10,125 each to  871 farmers in Canlaon City and 1,004 in Mabinay, Negros Oriental, started Saturday. Razo said more Mabinay farmers will be  covered during the second payout.In Negros Oriental, an initial 5,744 small farmers are scheduled to receive a combined ₱58.1 million this week. The recipient list covers farmers from Amlan, Bais City, Bayawan City, Jimalalud, Pamplona, Siaton, Tayasan, and Zamboanguita.Meanwhile, a third bat...

More than 93,000 children have received measles-rubella vaccines across the Negros Island Region during the first five days of the “Ligtas Tigdas” campaign, but more than 344,000 others remain to be reached before the vaccination drive ends on Aug. 28.The Department of Health-Negros Island Region Center for Health Development reported Sunday, Aug. 16, that 93,416 children aged six to 59 months were vaccinated from Aug. 10 to 14. The figure represents about 21.3 percent of the region’s 437,586 eligible children, as DOH-NIR data showed that 344,170 children had yet to receive the supplemental vaccine.Negros Occidental recorded the highest coverage among the four major areas in the region, with 67,987 of its 244,757 target children vaccinated, equivalent to 27.8 percent.B...

Brig. Gen. Romano Cardiño*More than P211 million worth of suspected illegal drugs and smuggled cigarettes were seized while 1,161 wanted persons were arrested during the first 100 days of Brig. Gen. Romano Cardiño as director of the Police Regional Office-Negros Island Region.PRO-NIR said its operations from May 8 to Aug. 16 yielded about P136.01 million worth of suspected illegal drugs and P75.47 million worth of allegedly smuggled cigarettes, for a combined estimated value of P211.48 million.Police conducted 761 anti-drug operations during the period, resulting in the arrest of 822 persons and the confiscation of 19,975.81 grams, or nearly 20 kilograms, of suspected shabu and 1,422 grams of marijuana.The seized drugs had a combined estimated standard drug price of P136,00...

A 30-year-old man classified as a high-value drug target was arrested after authorities seized about P340,000 worth of suspected shabu during a buy-bust operation in Sibulan, Negros Oriental, early Friday, Aug. 14.The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency-Negros Oriental identified the suspect only by the alias “Botchoy,” a married resident of Brgy. Bajumpandan, Dumaguete City.The operation was conducted in Purok 4, Brgy. Boloc-boloc, Sibulan.Authorities recovered six heat-sealed sachets containing about 50 grams of suspected shabu with an estimated standard drug price of P340,000.The suspect was placed under policecustody and is facing charges for alleged violations of the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.*