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Tracy Mae Sunio works online as a virtual assistant.*MBM photHer family is the reason she “smilebrates”.Tracy Mae Sunio, 23, one of this year’s Miss Bacolod MassKara (MBM) candidates, said she is an adopted child, but she takes it as an inspiration to pursue her dreams.In an interview during the MBM press presentation on Oct. 1, she said that the reason she smiles and celebrates or “smilebrates” is her family.“I want to remind everyone that family is forever and they will make you smile until you grow old”, she said.She is a former student of Riverside College and now works online as a virtual assistant.Sunio brings to the pageant stage her advocacy for diverse disabilities awareness.“They have been in the shadows for a long time and now is the time address the ...

The Philippine National Police will leave it to the Negros Occidental Provincial Prosecutor’s Office to determine if four Bacolod City policemen and a non-uniformed personnel should be included in a police recruitment scam criminal case, Col. Leo Pamittan, Negros Occidental provincial police director, said Wednesday, October 4.Pamittan said 11 recruits have filed complaints against La Castellana Councilor Donato Domaguit and Mary June Abao Delos Santos for large scale estafa before the prosecutor’s office.The five from the BCPO were not named as respondents but were mentioned in the affidavits of about three complainants, Pamittan said.EMS Randy Bando, Negros Occidental Provincial Police Internal Affairs Service head, said during the conduct of their investigation the f...

Political rivalry could intensify with the October 30 barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections fast approaching, Election Provincial Supervisor Ian Lee Ananoria said on Wednesday, October 4.But “as of now we have no reported intense (political) rivalry, we are hoping this continues so we will have zero election related incidents”, Col. Leo Pamittan, Negros Occidental provincial police director, said.Ananoria said political rivalry could escalate because of the Comelec’s issuance of show cause orders to candidates for premature campaigning.The Comelec issued show cause orders to 47 candidates in Negros Occidental for them to respond to the complaints lodged against them. Those issued show cause orders could retaliate, Ananoria said.Ananoria expects more show cause orders ...

The Provincial Joint Security Control Center meeting on Wednesday.*Law enforcers are keeping a close watch on three barangays in Negros Occidental tagged as “red” areas of grave concern because of the presence of Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army (CPP-NPA) rebels ahead of the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections (BSKE) on October 30.The three barangays are Minapasok in Calatrava, and Quintin Remo and Macagahay in Moises Padilla, Col. Leo Pamittan, Negros Occidental provincial police director, said in an interview after a Provincial Joint Security Control Center (PJSCC) meeting at the Negros Residences in Bacolod City on Wednesday, October 4.But Pamittan said “we have nothing to worry about since we have this (under) control. We hope we will not reach t...

One city and a non-government organization in Negros Occidental are finalists for the 2023 Galing Pook awards.Bago City’s "Reviving the Majestic Diversity of Bago Watershed" is one of the 17 local government unit finalists from around the country.The Negrense Volunteers for Change (NVC) Foundation is one of 10 finalists for the 2023 Galing Pook Citizenship Awards."This year's Galing Pook Awards is not just about recognizing excellence, it is also about constantly finding new ways of approaching the challenges we face and moving towards progress and transformation through effective local governance. We are proud to say that each year, more LGUs take on the challenge to build smarter, safer, more sustainable, and disaster-resilient communities,” Galing Pook Chairperson Mel Seen S...

Financial aid distribution to rice retailers and monitoring of rice prices will continue despite President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s announcement Wednesday, October 4, of the lifting of the price cap on regular and well-milled rice.Trade and Industry Secretary Alfredo Pascual, in a press conference in Makati City, said the government will still release the financial aid to small retailers selling the rice who have not received the P15,000 cash assistance.As of September 29, the government, through the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), has released P217.2 million under the Sustainable Livelihood Program-Economic Relief Subsidy to 14,480 out of the 19,685 targeted rice retailers nationwide.DTI has helped the DSWD in identifying, profiling, and validating the benef...

Sue Ramirez with her boyfriend Victorias City Mayor Javier Miguel Benitez.*Sue Ramirez FB page photoNegrense actress Sue Ramirez won the Best Supporting Actress Award at the Asian Academy Creative Awards 2023 and will represent the country at the upcoming grand awards in Singapore in December.She will be competing against other artists across Asia on December 6 and 7 at the historic Chijmes Hall of Singapore.Ramirez has roots in Sipalay City and is the girlfriend of Victorias City Mayor Javier Miguel Benitez.She was awarded for her role as “Val” in “K Love”, a TV series about five urbanites traversing their own paths as they pursue their own “K-Drama” inspired happy endings.Ramirez said her character is a “fake-it-till-you-make-it” type and she will never ask help from ...