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President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., his wife, Liza Araneta Marcos, and Vice President Sara Duterte Carpio are expected to join the MassKara Festival in October, Bacolod Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez said Friday, July 15.Benitez said he invited Marcos to the festival and his  coming is almost confirmed.The vice president, on the other hand, reminded him that she will be attending the festival, Benitez said.The specific dates of their arrival have yet to be set.Bacolod  is preparing to stage a grander MassKara Festival this year, Benitez said.A new MassKara Festival Foundation will be created that will need the accreditation of  the Sangguniang Panlungsod, he said.Lawyer Pinky Mirano Ocampo, who chairs this year’s festival, will be part of the foundation, ...

The United Sugar Producers Federation (UNIFED) is supporting the temporary appointment of  Ignacio Santillana as officer-in-charge of the Sugar Regulatory Administration while waiting for the  official appointee of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who is also sitting as secretary of the Department of Agriculture.The press statement from UNIFED president Manuel Lamata Friday, July 15, came after Hermenegildo Serafica issued a memorandum order on July 12 stating that his position as SRA administrator was not covered by the Memorandum Circular 1 from the Office of the President.Memorandum Circular 1  states  that all appointed officials must vacate their posts effective June 30 to give the new administration leeway to appoint its  own people.“Serafica is a ...

Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson said on Friday, July 15, that active COVID-19 cases in Negros occidental could hit 100 next week.“We should now tell the public that it is possible that by next week we will be hitting 100 active cases already,” he said.Lacson said the COVID-19 cases have been going up and he has received information that people he knows are getting hit by the virus.“So let’s be aware of that and continue to protect ourselves,” he said.He stressed the need to continue wearing of face masks and being vigilant.Negros Occidental had six new COVID-19 cases Friday for a total of 41 active cases, the Provincial Incident Management Team reported.Meanwhile, Lacson said reshuffling of some heads of provincial government hospitals is being planned.He also assured ...

Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson, Dr. Mary Ann Sta. Lucia, OIC of the Local Health Support Division of the Department of Health VI, Provincial Health Officer Dr. Ernell Tumimbang and Dr. Jessica Fama discuss the dengue situation in Negros Occidental Thgursday afternoon. cussed about local health concerns, as well as updates in addressing the dengue cases among the LGUs.Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson said on Friday, July 15, that active COVID-19 cases in Negros occidental could hit 100 next week.“We should now tell the public that it is possible that by next week we will be hitting 100 active cases already,” he said.Lacson said the COVID-19 cases have been going up and he has received information that people he knows are getting hit by the virus.“So let’s be aware of that and continue to ...

The Department of Health is sending a team to help Negros Occidental fight the rise in its dengue cases, Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson said Friday, July 15.The team will focus on the dengue situation in Negros Occidental that now has the highest number of cases in Western Visayas, he said.“It has reached an alarming level that is why they are here to help,” Lacson said.Dengue cases in Western Visayas have reached a record high of more than 5,000 with 31 deaths, the DOH 6 reported Wednesday, July 13.The dengue cases in Western Visayas this year have hit 5,057 with 574 new cases from June 26 to July 2, or an increase by 389 percent compared to last year, the report said.Negros Occidental has the highest number of dengue cases in the region at 1,869 or an increase by 777 percen...

Bacolod Mayor Alfredo Abelardo "Albee" Benitez welcomes Lucio Tan III during the press launch of the Tanduay Bacolod Rum Festival 2022.*The Tanduay Bacolod Rum Festival will be held from August 12-20, and is expected to refuel Bacolod City’s tourism industry after the COVID-19 pandemic.Lucio Tan III, president and chief operating officer of Tanduay Distillers Inc. and vice chairman of the Lucio Tan Group, and Bacolod Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez joined a press conference at the Bacolod City Government Center (BCGC) Friday, July 15, to announce the holding of the festival after a two-year hiatus.Bacolod and Tanduay first staged the festival in 2019 to pay homage to the province’s sugarcane industry. It was called off in 2020 and 2021 because of the global pandemic. Ta...

“Be the rays of the SUNN.”That was the challenge of the newly-installed president of the government-run Northern Negros State College of Science and Technology as he vowed to continue upgrading the institution despite the pandemic disruptions during his investiture at the school’s SUNN Hotel  in Sagay  City on Thursday, July 14.Dr. Renante Egcas was formally installed as the fifth president of NONESCOST two years after the pandemic, a press release from Sagay City said.In his speech, he said that despite the disruption brought by the pandemic he is challenging all the teachers, staff, and stakeholders of NONESCOST to be the rays of the SUNN as the school would soon  become the  State University of Northern Negros (SUNN).“Let us work together to prove tha...

The spokesman of Bacolod Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez  released a Commission on Audit observation memorandum  stating that various vaccines amounting to P14.4 million either  procured by the city government  or received from the national government were expired, damaged or defective, which resulted to wastage of government funds.A copy of the audit memorandum observation dated March 30, 2022 was released by Benitez spokesman Lyzander  Dilag to the media at a press conference on Thursday, July 14.The report cited 2,212 vials of AstraZeneca, 141 of Moderna, 1,820 of Sputnik and 123 of Sinovac vaccines amounting to P14, 453,116.Bacolod Cold Room Coordinator  Paulynne  Sustento, in response to the COA observation  memorandum  on May 4,...

The contract of the Bacolod City government with AstraZeneca for the purchase of 650,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccines is missing, Lyzander Dilag, spokesman of Bacolod Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez, said Thursday, July 14.The city government is being asked to pay the balance of P98 million for the vaccines  “on the basis of a supposed obligation where the original contract of such obligation cannot be found, or cannot be seen, what is presented to us is merely a draft”, Dilag said at a press conference.Asked if the city government would pay the P98 million if the contract is found, Dilag said it would have to be evaluated.An AstraZeneca representative who met with Benitez recently said that the city government owed them a balance of P98 million for the 650,000 doses of COVID...

A road in Barangay 39, Bacolod City, was temporarily closed due to a reported chemical spill on Thursday morning, July 14.This, after some residents of the barangay noticed foul smell from a private lot near the office of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, which prompted the members of the Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office, City Health Office, Bureau of Fire Protection and the Philippine National Police along with Councilor Pao Sy and  Joseph Karol Chiu, secretary to  the mayor, to conduct an ocular inspection in the area.During the inspection, they found several containers of hazardous chemicals. They also took samples for laboratory testing at the Negros Prawn Cooperative laboratory.Lime and sawdust were placed inside the compound to reduce the o...