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Negros Occidental Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson, Bacolod Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez and Cosette Canilao, president and chief executive officer of Aboitiz InfraCapital, (l-r) meet at the Governor's Office on Thursday, February 2.*Richard Malihan photoAboitiz InfraCapital is proposing a P2.8 billion bulk water supply joint venture project with the Negros Occidental and Bacolod City governments, Bacolod Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez said.Cosette Canilao, president and chief executive officer of Aboitiz InfraCapital, met with Benitez and Negros Occidental Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson at the provincial Capitol on Thursday, February 2, to discuss the plan.The proposal is to put up the bulk water supply facility in Talisay City, which will also service the needs of Bacolod, Benitez said....

Former Commissioner Rowena Guanzon of the Commission on Elections said the person who posted the video of her berating drunk persons on the sidewalk during the Dinagsa Festival in Cadiz City that has gone viral could face libel charges.The video was posted with malice as it did not capture the entire incident, Guanzon said.“What you saw in the video posted on Facebook is untruthful,” she said.“They are trying to portray that I am abusive and violent which is not true, none of them were hurt,” she said.She said when she passed Magsaysay Street on her way home there were two people drinking Red Horse and one was waving his arm as he was smoking.“I told them not to smoke on the sidewalk as someone could get hurt and all of a sudden someone shouted ‘is this your side walk’,...

Fifty barangay captains from local government units in Negros Occidental completed the Certificate in Public Administration and Governance (CPAG) Scholarship Program and attended the completion rites at the University of Negros Occidental – Recoletos in Bacolod City, Tuesday, January 31.The CPAG Program is one of the scholarship categories under the Negros Occidental Scholarship Program (NOSP) Division of the provincial government, a press release said Wednesday.Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson and UNO-R signed a Memorandum of Agreement for the scholarship that aims to boost the managerial and leadership skills of local leaders, which is also in collaboration with the Negros Occ. SP-Committee on Barangay Affairs led by Board Member Pepello.The scholarship also aims to provide an in...

An investigation is underway to determine the veracity of the claim of the municipal treasurer of Isabela, Negros Occidental, that about P3 million in cash and an undetermined amount in checks belonging to the town government were stolen from her house in Bacolod City.Nenette Mandadero Escarda, 60, reported that a robbery took place at her house at Las Palmas Subdivision in Barangay Taculing, Bacolod City, on January 21, Capt. Dax Santillan, Police Station 6 chief, said.Escarda told the police that she had brought the cash and checks to her house, which she was going to deposit in the bank, Santillan said.She said the thieves entered her house through a window, he added.The question is why she brought the money and checks that were not hers to her house, Santillan said....

The Commission on Elections has processed 56,723 new voter registrants in Negros Occidental and Bacolod City, Provincial Elections Supervisor Ian Lee Ananoria said on Wednesday, February 1.The filing of applications to vote was from December 12 to January 31.There were 28,166 male and 28,557 female registrants, Ananoria said.Bacolod City had the most number of new voter registrants at 13,792.The 15 to 17- year-old voter registrants for the Sangguniang Kabataan elections were 13,789 in Negros Occidental and Bacolod City.The Election Registration Board (ERB) hearings are set February 20.The ERB has to approve the applications for registration before an individual can be considered a registered voter. Each city and municipality have their own ERB, which is composed of ...

The Olive Ridley Sea Turtle hatchlings head for the sea in Sipalay City.*Sipalay LGU photoForty-five sea turtle hatchlings were released into the sea at the Poblacion Beach in Sipalay City, Negros Occidental, at 7 a.m. Wednesday, February 1.The Olive Ridley Sea Turtle hatchlings were released by the Sipalay City government Bantay Dagat personnel.Bantay Dagat coordinator Edsel Toledo said the turtles’ nest was sighted around the end of November 2022 and was secured.It usually takes around 60 days for the eggs to hatch, he said.The nest where the hatchlings came from is one of the three nests closely monitored by the Sipalay City Bantay Dagat.*

Negros Occidental recorded the first dengue death in Western Visayas for 2023, the Department of Health (DOH) said.The DOH Regional Epidemiology and Surveillance Unit reported that the first dengue fatality for 2023 in Negros Occidental is a 7-year-old girl who died on January 21.Negros Occidental also recorded the most number of dengue cases in Western Visayas at 23 in Morbidity Week 3 from January 15 to 21, for a total of 93 from the start of the year.In second place is Aklan with 21 cases for a total of 57, followed by Iloilo Province with 20 cases for a total of 54.Bacolod City had seven new cases for a total of 30.Western Visayas has recorded 326 dengue cases in January.Dengue is a viral infection transmitted to humans through the bite of infected mosquitoes. T...

Dr. Angel C. Alcala was a former Silliman University president and Department of Environment and Natural Resources secretary.*SU photoNational Scientist Dr. Angel C. Alcala died at the Silliman University Medical Center in Dumaguete City at 1:15 p.m. on Wednesday, February 1.He was 93.He succumbed to septic shock due to a ruptured appendicitis. His death was confirmed by his youngest son, veterinarian Ely Alcala.Alcala was named National Scientist in 2017, was the 9th president Silliman University (1991-1992), Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) secretary (1992-1995), Commission on Higher Education chairperson (1995-1998) and a 1992 Ramon Magsaysay Awardee for Public Service.He grew up in a fishing village in Cauayan town in Negros Occidental. The wor...

Governors Eugenio Jose Lacson and Roel Degamo during their meeting in Dumaguete City Wednesday.*Choy Gallarde photoNegros Oriental Gov. Roel Degamo wants the proposed Negros Island Region to include four provinces to ensure equal voting at Regional Development Council meetings.Negros Occidental Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson met with Degamo in Dumaguete City on Wednesday morning, February 1, to discuss the proposed creation of the NIR, which will include the two Negros provinces and Siquijor.Degamo had earlier aired his opposition to the creation of the new region.All of the representatives of Negros Occidental, Oriental and Siquijor have co-authored a bill in Congress seeking the creation of the new region.Degamo at their meeting Wednesday “put on the table, the idea of crea...