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Rep. Arnolfo “Arnie” Teves Jr. *House Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez on Thursday, March 16, strongly urged Rep. Arnolfo “Arnie” Teves Jr. (Neg. Or., 3rd District) to reconsider his decision not to return to the country, saying “It does not sit well for a House Member to flee the country rather than avail himself of all the legal remedies available to him”.Romualdez issued the statement following a private meeting with Teves’ legal counsel, lawyer Ferdinand Topacio, Wednesday evening.Teves earlier sent a letter to Romualdez seeking a two-month leave of absence from the House of Representatives due to a “very grave security threat to his life and his family”.The congressman has been linked to the murder of Gov. Roel Degamo that also left eight others dead in Pamplona, Neg...

Sidrey Mel Aldeguer Flores *Colegio San Agustin - Bacolod graduate Sidrey Mel Aldeguer Flores who topped the March 2023 Medical Technologist Licensure Examination plans to enroll in medical school and go for his dream to become a doctor.He did not expect to make it to Top 1 and is thankful to the Lord for giving it to him, Flores said.Flores said he was aiming for any of the spots in the Top 10 but did not expect to be No. 1.He was elated that he topped the board examination with a rating of 92.10 percent and has barely had any sleep since he learned that he topped the exams, Flores said.His preparation for the board examination was holistic, it was not only mental but physical and spiritual, and he also allotted time for leisure and exercise, Flores said.He stresse...

Photos of Arnil Labradilla released by the JTF Negros.*The slain suspect in the March 4 killing of Negros Oriental Governor Roel Degamo and eight others was a former member of the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army (CPP-NPA), the Special Joint Task Force Negros said Wednesday, March 15.The slain suspect was identified as Arnil Labradilla of Sitio Awang, Barangay Atotes in Bindoy town, Negros Oriental.Labradilla was identified based on revelations by other suspects apprehended during the pursuit operations by military and police personnel hours after the attack, Maj. Cenon Pancito III, task force spokesperson, told the Philippine News Agency.He was killed after he allegedly resisted arrest and engaged in a shootout with pursuing troops hours after at least ...

Rep. Arnolfo Teves Jr. has left the United States, Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said Wednesday.*Rep. Arnolfo Teves Jr. (Neg. Or., 3rd District) has appealed for a two-month leave of absence from the House of Representatives due to a “very grave security threat to his life and his family”.Teves made the appeal in a letter to Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez following the expiration of his travel authority on March 9.The congressman has been linked to the murder of Gov. Roel Degamo that also left eight others dead in Pamplona, Negros Oriental, on March 4.Teves has denied any involvement in the killings and his lawyer has claimed that firearms recovered from his residences in Negros Oriental on March 10 were planted.Teves, in his letter to Romualdez, assured t...

Burial will be at the governor’s residence in Barangay Bonawon, Siaton.*President Ferdinand Marcos has declared Thursday, March 16, a special non-working day in Negros Oriental for the funeral of slain Gov. Roel Degamo.The Negros Oriental Office of the Governor had requested for the declaration “to allow the community to grieve and honor the memory “of Degamo and the other victims of the Pamplona massacre.Degamo and eight others were killed by heavily armed men at his residence in Pamplona, Negros Oriental, on March 4.Proclamation 185 signed for the president by Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin stated that “it is but fitting and proper to give the people of the Province of Negros Oriental the opportunity to show their respect and join the interment of Goveror Degamo”....

Provincial Election Supervisor Ian Lee Ananoria*The Commission on Elections will discuss the insurgency problem in some barangays in southern Negros Occidental with the Philippine National Police to determine whether there is a need to declare areas of concern, Provincial Election Supervisor Ian Lee Ananoria said Wednesday, March 15.The Comelec will set a criteria for determining areas of concern, he said.Numerous encounters between government and rebels forces have occurred in barangays in Himamaylan City that have caused residents to evacuate in recent months.Ananoria said political rivalry is more intense during barangay elections because residents are related to each other, and the voting area is smaller so every vote counts.The Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan ele...

Vice Mayor Leo Rafael Cueva, Rep. Alfredo Marañon III, Sinigayan Foundation president Primitivo Rivera Jr. and Mayor Narciso Javelosa Jr. (l-r) hand over a plaque and souvenirs to Sen. Francis Tolentino (2nd from right) after his speech at the Sinigayan Festival opening.*Senator Francis Tolentino commended Sagay City for its continuous environmental protection efforts, which he said other local government units should emulate after the city was recently awarded as one of the Top 100 Destinations in the world.Tolentino, who was the guest speaker at the Sinigayan Festival opening at the Sagay City Public Plaza Wednesday, March 15, said that the city is blessed because it has surmounted every challenge and has advocated so much for the protection of the environment.“The internatio...

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has informed the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation about voter registrants who submitted fake PhilHealth identification cards for appropriate legal action, Provincial Election Supervisor Ian Lee Ananoria said Wednesday, March 15.The Bacolod COMELEC has disqualified 15 voter applicants for the use of fake PhilHealth IDs, City Election Registrar Kathrina Trinio Caña said.The majority of those who used fake IDs are from Barangay 29, she said.“It is up to the issuing agency to decide on the action it will take,” Caña added.They suspected that fake IDs were being used because the colors were very light so they checked with PhilHealth, she said.There were instances where they immediately denied voter applicants because they saw that...

DILG Regional Director Juan Jovian Ingeniero turning over the Certificate of Appointment to Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson*Negros Occidental Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson has been appointed chairperson of the Regional Peace and Order Council (RPOC).President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Benjamin Abalos Jr., Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) secretary and chairperson of the National Peace and Order Council, signed Lacson’s Certificate of Appointment.DILG Regional Director Juan Jovian Ingeniero turned over the Certificate of Appointment to Lacson on Tuesday, March 14.The DILG Region 6 team also discussed with the governor his duties and functions as the RPOC chairperson.*

Colegio San Agustin - Bacolod graduate Sidrey Mel Aldeguer Flores was the top 1 passer in the March 2023 Medical Technologist Licensure Examination, the Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) announced Tuesday, March 14.He topped the examination with a rating of 92.10 percent.Flores was also the first summa cum laude medical technologist graduate of CSA-B.Flores is the former editor-in-chief of the Eagle, the official school paper of CSA-B.He graduated from Liceo De La Salle as the class valedictorian in 2018.The PRC said 4,714 out of 6,165 passed the Medical Technologists Licensure Examination given by the Board of Medical Technology in the NCR, Baguio, Cagayan de Oro, Cebu, Davao, Iloilo, Koronadal, Legazpi, Lucena, Pagadian, Pampanga, Rosales, Tacloban, Tuguega...