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Representatives Greg Gasataya, Gerardo Valmayor, Alfredo Marañon III, Francisco Benitez, Juliet Ma. Ferrer and Mercedes Alvarez (l-r) of Negros Occidental are among the authors of the bills seeking the creation of the NIR.*The House Committee on Local Government held initial deliberations on three bills that aim to create the Negros Island Region on Tuesday morning, August 23, Rep. Francisco “Kiko” Benitez (Neg. Occ., 3rd District) said.Benitez and nine other Negros representatives authored House Bill No. 1446 seeking the creation of Region VI- B or the expanded NIR , which includes Negros Occidental and Oriental, and Siquijor.A Technical Working Group was created to consolidate the bills and address questions, co-headed by Rep. Mercedes Alvarez (Neg. Occ., 6th District) and Re...

Ninfa R. Leonardia*Multi-awarded veteran journalist, editor and mentor to many, Ninfa R. Leonardia, passed away 5:30 a.m. Tuesday, August 23.She was editor-in-chief and president of the Visayan Daily Star in Bacolod City and wrote a column called “Twinkling”.Leonardia, 89, succumbed to a heart attack at the Riverside Medical Center in Bacolod City, her brother Evelio Leonardia, former Bacolod mayor and League of Cities of the Philippines president, said.“Our family grieves the loss of our pillar of strength and clan matriarch. But we are definitely sure that with her life-long commitment and dedication to journalism, where she had displayed her unique talents and established an unquestioned integrity during all these decades, she will also be missed and honored by the fourt...

The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) in Western Visayas has assured the public that it will improve its distribution system for its one-time cash assistance for indigent students.This, after thousands flocked to Ayala Malls Capitol Central in Bacolod City on Saturday, August 20, for the initial payout, but only 587 indigent students in the city and the province received cash assistance amounting to P2.203 million.Chaos ensued after the local DSWD office announced that only 600 beneficiaries from Bacolod City and Negros Occidental will be accommodated on the first day of the cash payout. More than 7,000 reportedly lined up outside of the mall. Some had started the queue as early as Friday night, August 19.Videos of the huge crowd forcing their way inside the m...

A man was killed and another was injured when a shooting broke out at a wake in Barangay Japitan, Escalante City, Negros Occidental, on Sunday, August 21.Killed was 33-year-old Jamar Paulino, while injured was Benjie Sabino, 50, who was said to be the target of the shooting.The victims and the suspect identified as 52-year-old Eduardo Mahilum were having a drinking spree at the wake.While Sabino and Mahilum were having a conversation, the suspect showed his firearm to the victim, who advised the latter to keep his weapon as there were many people attending the vigil.This prompted Sabino to leave Mahilum and sit beside Paulino, who was watching others engaged in a card game.Mahilum then went to Sabino and shot him in the face, but the bullet went through and hit Paulino ...

The baby was found buried here.*A newborn baby was found buried alive at a public cemetery in Pulupandan town Sunday, August 21.But hours later, it succumbed to loss of air after being inside a shoebox for more than three hours.Gravedigger Ramie Aurelio dug up the baby after a co-worker informed him about the cries at the burial site.Cristel Haro, 22, and Caesar Valdivieso, 23, reportedly went to the cemetery to bury their child. The couple said that the woman had a miscarriage and they would process their documents the following day.Pulupandan police chief Capt. Ryan Villasario, said the two kept secret the girl's pregnancy from her parents, as their other son is 10 months old.The police is now preparing an infanticide case against the parents.*

The opening of classes in schools under the Department of Education - Division of Negros Occidental went smoothly on Monday, August 22, its spokesperson Ian Arnold Arnaez said.However, in areas where there were heavy rains the COVID-19 protocol requiring learners to line up in an orderly manner on entering the school could not be followed, he said.The children were allowed to enter by batch and their mothers who had umbrellas were allowed into the schools to bring them to their classrooms, Arnaez said.The mothers were then asked to leave the school premises, he added.There are 8,000 classrooms under the Division of Negros Occidental that need repairs, he also said.Aside from those damaged by Typhon “Odette”, there are those that need repair because of old age, he said. ...

All Disaster Risk Reduction Management Councils in Western Visayas were placed on standby protocol Monday, August 22, as the region was identified as a very low risk area for the effects of Tropical Storm “Florita”, Regional Director Jose Roberto Nuñez of the Office of Civil Defense said.This response protocol was activated to ensure that preparedness measures are in place despite the classification of the region as a low risk area, he said.“Florita” continues to maintain its strength while moving slowly westward over the Philippine sea, the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA)  reported at 8 p.m. Monday.The center of “Florita” was estimated  at 145 km East of Casiguran, Aurora (16.2°N, 123.5°E), with maximum sustained ...

The Department of Health reported on Monday, August 22, that a fourth monkeypox case has been detected in the country, but the DOH 6 could not confirm a report circulating that the person infected was from Iloilo.The DOH central office said the fourth person hit with monkeypox in the country is a 25-year-old Filipino with no documented travel history to or from countries with confirmed cases of the disease.The case had a positive result for monkeypox via real time polymerase chain reaction test on August 19 conducted by the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine, it said.“The case is being cared for and is admitted in an isolation facility. Intensive case investigation and contact tracing is ongoing,” the DOH said.About 14 close contacts of the fourth case have been ident...

The newly elected Philippine Councilors League - Negros Occidental chapter officers.* photo courtesy of Ryan GamboaLa Carlota Councilor Julius Asistio was elected president of the Philippine Councilors League - Negros Occidental chapter at L’Fisher Hotel in Bacolod City, Monday afternoon, August 22.Asistio won with 270 votes over his opponent Binalbagan Councilor Jerry Yulo who garnered 28 votes.Virgie Pastor of  Escalante City won as secretary general over Jodybonne Octaviano of Hinoba-an by a vote of  195-92.La Carlota Councilor Julius Asistio (center) with his parents Vice Gov. Jeffrey Ferrer and Rep. Juliet Marie Ferrer (Neg. Occ., 4th District)*Those who won unopposed were  vice president Ryan Gamboa of Silay City, treasurer Richard Jaojoco - Toboso, auditor Ja...