Negros Oriental bans pork products from Cebu, too

The Negros Oriental provincial government has imposed a total ban on pigs, pork, and byproducts from nearby Cebu province following the first reported African swine fever (ASF) case in Carcar City.The total ban will be in effect for the next 45 days based on an executive order issued on March 3, Ophelia Felisilda, chief operations officer of the Provincial Veterinary Office (PVO), told the Philippine News Agency on Thursday.“(The late) Governor Degamo signed and issued the executive order on the total ban even before the news of the ASF cases in Carcar City came out, to prevent the swine industry in Negros Oriental from being affected by the animal disease,” she said.Negros Occidental and Bacolod City also issued a similar ban on Tuesday, March 7, on the entry of pigs and pork ...

Mar92023 by Carla P. GomezNo Comments

Albee: First Lady arriving Friday for mass wedding, raffle set

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Bacolod Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez and First Lady Liza Araneta Marcos.*First Lady Liza Araneta Marcos is arriving in Bacolod City Friday night, March 10, for the mass wedding of 2,023 couples Saturday afternoon, Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez said.The mass wedding will be held at the Bacolod City Government Center grounds at 2 p.m. Saturday, he said.A raffle will be held where winning couples will be given livelihood packages, Benitez added.He said President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has not confirmed his attendance at the event.*

Mar92023 by Carla P. GomezNo Comments

Suspected HFMD casesin Negros up 7,520%: DOH

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The suspected Hand Foot and Mouth Disease (HFMD) cases in Negros Occidental from January 1 to February 25 increased by 7,520 percent compared to the same period in 2022, the Department of Health 6 reported Monday, March 6.Negros Occidental recorded 762 cases this year compared to 10 in the same period last year, it said.Bacolod has 117 cases this year or an increase by 3,800 percent with only three cases recorded in 2022, the DOH added.Iloilo province has the highest number of HFMD cases in Western Visayas at 2,420 followed by Negros Occidental with 762, Antique – 411, Guimaras – 315, Iloilo City – 284, Capiz – 245, Aklan – 216 and Bacolod City -117, the DOH said.HFMD is a common infection in children that causes sores called ulcers inside or around their mouth and a rash o...

Mar92023 by Digicast NegrosNo Comments

Negros groups air demands on international women’s day

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The women's protest in Bacolod on Wednesday.*Paghimutad photoWages, dignified work, public services, safe spaces, and human rights were the demands of Negros women’s groups as they marked the 112th year of International Working Women’s Day on Wednesday, March 8.Women Workers United – Negros staged a rally to reaffirm their fight against injustice and exploitation of women in all forms, a press release from the group said.The WWU-Negros members marched from the Rizal Park at Araneta Street to the Bacolod City Government Center replica at the Bacolod Public Plaza for a joint rally.“Filipino women find ourselves in a time of crisis today. Joblessness is at an all-time high, 7 in 10 Filipinos—mostly women—are being driven into informal, precarious work, inflation is soaring at ...

Mar92023 by Digicast NegrosNo Comments

Massacre mastermind’s end near, DOJ says; NegOr PNP revamp on

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The nine Pamplona massacre victims.*Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said on Wednesday, March 8, that the search for the mastermind behind the killing of Negros Oriental Governor Roel Degamo has been boosted by a supposed video-conference call between the alleged mastermind and the suspects.While Interior and Local Government Secretary Benjamin Abalos Jr. said aside from the relief of police personnel in Bayawan City, a revamp of the entire Negros Oriental police force is underway.“The move to overhaul and relieve the entire police force in Negros Oriental is part of the DILG and PNP's efforts to double up initiatives in maintaining security in the province, “Abalos said.Relieving the whole police personnel of the province would help strengthen peace and order in the...

Mar82023 by Carla P. GomezNo Comments

Marcos vows swift justice for Degamo, other massacre victims, offers assistance

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President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. at the wake of Gov. Roel Degamo at his residence in Dumaguete City Wednesday night.*President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. assured on Tuesday, March 7, that justice will be served to the family of Negros Oriental Gov. Roel Degamo and other victims of the Pamplona massacre.Marcos, who visited the wake of Degamo at his home in Dumaguete City Tuesday evening, also vowed to provide assistance to the families of those who were killed and injured during the gun attack.Heavily armed men entered the Degamo compound in Pamplona, Negros Oriental, on Saturday and killed the governor and eight others, and wounded 17.Many of those killed and injured were indigent civilians seeking government assistance.Marcos met with Degamo’s widow, Pamplona Mayor Janice Dega...

Mar82023 by Levi Z. TrioNo Comments

Sagay, Bago win top awards at int’l tourism tilt in Germany

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The Sagay City delegation at the awards rites.*DOT photoTwo Negros Occidental cities won top Green Destinations Story Awards for their sustainable tourism practices at the prestigious Internationale Tourismos-Borse (ITB) Berlin held in Messe Berlin, Germany, Tuesday night, March 7.Sagay City won People's Choice Award and 2nd Place in the Nature and Scenery Category for Mangrove Forest Protection through its Community-based EcoTourism Project.Bago City won 3rd place in the Environment and Climate Category for its entry "Reviving the Majestic Diversity of Bago Watershed".Rep. Alfredo Marañon III (Neg. Occ., 2nd District) and Sagay Vice Mayor Leo Rafael Cueva received Sagay’s award for its entry that showcased the Sagay Marine Reserve, which suffered from massive destruction o...

Mar82023 by Carla P. GomezNo Comments

DOH: Neg. Occ. no longer dengue topnotcher in WV

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Negros Occidental is no longer the province with the most number of dengue cases in Western Visayas.The Department of Health 6 reported that from February 19-25, or morbidity week 8, Negros Occidental, Guimaras and Iloilo City had no new reported dengue cases.There were 45 new dengue cases in Western Visayas for morbidity week 8 for a total of 923 cases since the start of the year or an increase by 164 percent compared to 350 cases during the same period in 2022.The top three provinces with the highest number of newly-reported dengue cases as of morbidity week 8 were Iloilo province with - 21, Antique and Capiz – seven each, and Aklan and Bacolod City with five each, the DOH reported.The 923 dengue cases in Western Visayas since the start of the year were in Iloilo Province...

Mar82023 by Digicast NegrosNo Comments

Benitez files bill to prevent oil spills, pollution from ships

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Rep. Francisco “Kiko” Benitez (Neg. Occ., 3rd District) *Rep. Francisco “Kiko” Benitez (Neg. Occ., 3rd District) filed a bill on Wednesday, February 8, that will strengthen regulation of ships to prevent oil spills and discharge of harmful substances into the sea, following the catastrophic oil spill in Oriental Mindoro, recently.House Bill No. 7515 provides for the strict enforcement of the regulations under the 1973 International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships, and its 1978 Protocol, or MARPOL 73/78, which we signed in 2001, he said."We signed MARPOL 73/78 in 2001. An implementing legislation is long overdue. We must keep our commitment to international law, and perform our responsibility to protect the environment," Benitez said.“We cannot let anot...

Mar82023 by Carla P. GomezNo Comments

NBI files raps vs. 3 brgy captains, says Villarosa illegal STL ‘financier’

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Tangub Barangay Captain Noli Villarosa denies being an illegal STL financier.*The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) filed criminal charges against three barangay captains, including Noli Villarosa of Tangub, Bacolod City, who was tagged as a “financier” of illegal Small Town Lottery (STL) operations, before the Kabankalan City Prosecutor’s Office on Wednesday, March 8.Named in the complaint along with Villarosa were Kabankalan City barangay captains Franz Leonard Seguero and Joel Alibango and one alias Ma’am who has yet to be named, NBI Bacolod Chief Renoir Baldovino said.NBI investigation showed that alias Ma’am is Villarosa’s illegal STL manager in Kabankalan City, and the two other barangay captains are “protectors” based on the testimonies of their bet collectors and ...