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A fisherman drowned in Brgy. Punta Salong, Manapla, Negros Occidental, at about 11 a.m. on Sunday, May 7.Jebbie Bantre Descatiar, 29, was fishing together with his two companions using a compressor, when he was discovered unconscious and is believed to have drowned, the police reported.The victim was rushed by his companions to the Manapla Municipal Health Office but was declared dead on arrival.The victim’s sister said he had been suffering from asthma.*

Fugitive Rep. Arnolfo Teves Jr. (Neg. Occc., 3rd District) is seeking asylum in Timor-Leste, the Department of Justice (DOJ) has learned from the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA).DOJ Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla bared Tuesday, May 9, the information relayed by the DFA in a letter dated April 29, saying Teves was spotted in the capital city Dili to apply for a protection visa.In turn, Remulla wrote DFA Secretary Enrique Manalo on Monday to apprise him of the “concrete steps” to designate Teves as a terrorist.The congressman has yet to return despite the expiration of his personal travel authority on March 9. His 60-day suspension in Congress is supposed to end May 22.He is a suspect in several killings in the province and may even be included in the murder charges rela...

Some of the Grade 7 students of Manapla National High School in Negros Occidental who are recipients of 850 learning tablets*The Negros Occidental provincial government has distributed some 850 computer tablets to Manapla National High School (MNHS) to boost learning through the use of technology among its Grade 7 students.The MNHS is the pilot school in the north for the implementation of the Project BONG or “Bata ang Ona sa Negros” named after Governor Eugenio Jose “Bong” Lacson.Ian Arnold Arnaez, information officer of the Department of Education Schools Division of Negros Occidental (DepEd-NegOcc), said on Tuesday, May 9, that the Project BONG is a continuing initiative and more schools will soon receive learning tablets for their students as well.In the south, schools ...

After 60 years of stellar service to the community Jack & Jill Schools and Castleson High School in Bacolod City are permanently closing their doors on June 30, Dr. Muriel Lopez-Wagner, president of both schools, announced Tuesday, May 9.Management cited the insurmountable burden on its finances due to the reverberating effects of the pandemic, despite its swift conversion to online classes and intensive teacher training, a press release said.Lopez-Wagner said they have been grieving the loss of Cecilia del Castillo Lopez since 2020 as well as feeling the distress as they watched the decrease in enrollment year after year.“I think several significant factors led to the ultimate financial collapse where the only way out was to sell a building,” she said.She expressed her...

Ronnie Baldonado photoThe initial damage to rice crops in Negros Occidental caused by heavy rains last week was P570,814, Provincial Agriculturist Edmundo Causing said Tuesday, May 9.Damage to rice crops in San Carlos City was P293,750 and in Cadiz City – P277,064, he said.Affected farmers were 33.The rains were brought on by an Intertropical Convergence Zone and Low Pressure Area.*

The two missing boys*A Bacolod resident is searching for her two young sons who have not returned home since Sunday night, May 7.Mervelyn C. Niñal is appealing to whoever may have spotted her sons to call her at 0981-2118-034.She said her sons are Gian Miguel, 13, and John Paul, 10.They disappeared on Sunday after she had scolded one of them, and are believed to have gone with a 13-year-old friend known for having ran away from home several times in the past, Niñal said.Niñal, who works at the Saint Ezekiel Moreno Health Center in Barangay Handumanan run by the Siervas de Maria nuns, said she is appealing her sons to come home because she loves them.“We may be poor but we are a family and should stay together,” she said.Her husband, Jason, is a construction work...

Flooding in Bacolod during heavy rain last week*Mayor Alfredo Abelado Benitez said on Monday, May 8, that he has directed the City Engineer’s Office to present to him a blueprint of all the drainages in Bacolod City within a week.The mayor issued the order following the recent flooding that hit the city during heavy rains.Benitez said he directed the city engineer to present an integrated blue print with the Department of Public Works and Highways.The CEO and DPWH need to synchronize their drainage work, he said.Meanwhile, the Bacolod Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office has started clearing the Mambuloc Creek of debris to allow the exit of water to prevent floods, Benitez said.About 100 informal settler families in the Mambuloc Creek danger zone also need to b...

More Bacolod City government employees are under investigation for various offenses, Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez said Monday, May 8.The mayor recently dismissed Ramel Palalon, Department of Public Services (DPS) head, from the service for nine counts of grave misconduct and gross neglect of duty.He allegedly availed of gasoline from the city government nine times for the alleged use of a city government bulldozer that does not work.Palalon has the option to file a motion for reconsideration or appeal, City Legal Officer Romeo Carlos Ting Jr. said.The mayor withheld the names of the other city employees under investigation pending the results, he said.This is to accord them due process, he said.He stressed the need for city employees to follow the rules to avoid f...

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...

Philippine Ambassador to Bahrain Anne Jalando-on Louis with King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa.*Philippine Ambassador to Bahrain Anne Jalando-on Louis presented her credentials to King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa on May 2, the Philippine Embassy announced.She is a Negrense and a University of St. La Salle nursing graduate.Louis presented her credentials to the King at the Sakhir Palace in Bahrain.She conveyed the felicitations from President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and noted the longstanding ties and excellent relations between the Philippines and Bahrain, the press release from the embassy said.Louis also conveyed appreciation to the King for his policies and the hospitality and kind treatment accorded to more than 57,000 Filipinos in Bahrain.The King affirmed the strong bila...