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The reassigned  hospital chiefs of eight Negros Occidental  provincial government-run hospitals have 15 days to transfer  to their new posts,  Provincial Administrator Rayfrando Diaz said Thursday, July 21.They are asking for time for a transition, which was granted for humanitarian reasons,  Diaz said.The reshuffling was done to improve hospital services, he said.The aim is to change the image of government-run hospitals to really be caring towards their patients, he said.Dr. Mary Ann  Maestral, chief of the Teresita L. Jalandoni Provincial Hospital in Silay City has not been transferred to a new post.Those transferred are Dr. Claudelia Josefa  Pabillo to the Cadiz District Hospital in Cadiz City, Dr. Myre Parpa - Lorenzo D. Zayco Dis...

The sea cow locally known as “dugong” that was found dead in the Macahulom Reef *Sagay PIO photoA very rare sea cow locally known as “dugong” was found dead in Macahulom Reef within the Sagay Marine Reserve in Sagay City, Negros Occidental, on Monday, July 18.The last time a dugong was stranded in the area was in 2000.The dead sea cow was a female adult measuring 2.95 meters with an estimated weight of 300-350 kilograms in an advanced state of decomposition, Jose Roberto Togle, head of the Resource Management Section of the Sagay Marine Reserve, said Thursday, July 21.Bantay Dagat Volunteers Dionesio Pahayahay, Francis Gopio, and Paolo Hulleza were on duty at the Macahulom Watchtower when they saw the dead animal at around 9 a.m. on July 18 and reported the sighting to ...

Mayor Javier Benitez (center) presides over the City Development Council meeting.*The Victorias City government is planning  to reappropriate and reprogram 20 percent of its development fund amounting to P55,231,320.59 that was conserved from 2015 to 2021.This was highlighted in the first  City Development Council meeting led by Mayor Javi Benitez at the Victorias City Resort Restobar on Tuesday, July 19.Present in the meeting were the Sangguniang Panglungsod members, department heads, barangay captains, and representatives of non-government organizations who are also council members.Benitez emphasized that the top priority of his administration is to implement services for the welfare of the people, and  saving the budget is only next in line.The city’s ...

Mayor Benjie Miranda during the appointment of former Negros Occidental Board Member Reynaldo Novero (left) as Kabankalan city administrator.*Mayor Benjie Miranda has appointed former Negros Occidental Board Member Reynaldo Novero as city administrator of Kabankalan effective Tuesday, July 19.Novero was Negros Occidental board member from 1993 to 1998.Former city administrator of Silay City, Jose Edward Davila, has been appointed acting city administrator of Kabankalan, Novero said on Thursday, July 21.He said Miranda has not made any changes among the regular department heads assigned by the previous administration.Miranda has also retained job order and casual employees appointed during the term of Mayor Pedro Zayco,  Novero said.The mayor has emphasized that...

The Sandiganbayan found two current and two retired officials of Sipalay City, Negros Occidental, guilty of “frauds against the public treasury” in connection with a heavy equipment lease contract with a private firm in 2008.The Sandiganbayan, in a decision promulgated July 15, fined Sipalay  City treasurer Renato Manilla and engineer Porferio Calderon Jr., and retired budget officer Fernando Balbin and general services officer Elizer Balbin P40,000 each. On July 20, 2021, accused Manilla, Balbin, Calderon, and Balbin filed a "Motion for Leave to Plead Guilty to Lesser 0ffense" of  frauds against the public treasury and similar offenses as defined under paragraph 1, Article 213 of the Revised Penal Code.In its comment dated July 21, 2021, the prosecution manifest...

The nine suspended cops had been assigned to the Silay City Police Station.*Nine policemen from Silay City, Negros Occidental, were suspended for 50 days for an administrative complaint filed against them four years ago.The order from the National Police Commission included then Silay City police chief Lt. Col. Noel Polines, who said the complaint stemmed from their operation against illegal gambling in the city in 2019. The grave misconduct complaint was downgraded to less grave misconduct, he said.They will be suspended with no pay for 50 days from July 16 to September 3.Lt. Judesses Catalogo, spokesperson of the Negros Occidental Police Provincial Office, said the suspension order came out on July 1.Following the order, eight of the nine policemen were relieved from ...

The encounter site in Brgy. Sandayao, Guihulngan City.*303rd IB photoA suspected member of the New People’s Army was killed in an encounter with government troopers at Brgy. Sandayao, Guihulngan City, Negros Oriental, on Wednesday, July 20.Troops of the 62nd Infantry Battalion of the Philippine Army responded to the reported presence of the rebels in the area that led to the encounter.The five-minute clash resulted in the death of Pompeo “Poping Landeza” Landisa, 54. He was said to have warrants of arrest for illegal possession of firearms, and murder.The government soldiers seized a KG9 rifle loaded with one magazine, one magnum 357 loaded with three ammunition, a hand grenade, and subversive documents.Meanwhile, Brig. Gen. Inocencio Pasaporte, 303rd Brigade Commander,...

Provincial Tourism Officer Cheryl Decena*The tourism industry in Negros Occidental, which had slowed down at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, is picking up again, Provincial Tourism Officer Cheryl Decena said Wednesday, July 20.Negros Occidental now has a lot of emerging tourism destinations, she said, but she assured that COVID-19 health protocols are being observed to prevent a surge in the virus.Negros Occidental’s domestic and foreign overnight tourists hit 127,494, partial data from January to June shows.The report only covers figures from 13 local government units in Negros Occidental, the number of overnight tourists will be higher when the 18 other LGUs submit their data, Decena said.Same day tourists in Negros Occidental hit 445,118, reports from 10 cities ...

Councilor Al Victor Espino authored the SP resolution in support of Bacolod's redistricting.*The Bacolod Sangguniang Panlungsod approved a resolution recommending the redistricting of the city into two legislative districts during its regular session on Wednesday, July 20.Bacolod Rep. Greg Gasataya filed House Bill 297 seeking the creation of a second congressional district for Bacolod City on June 30.Gasataya had also filed the same bill in the 17th and 18th Congress but it did not prosper because the Bacolod SP did not pass a resolution supporting the measure.Bacolod Councilor Al Victor Espino, who authored the SP resolution in support of Gasataya’s bill on Wednesday, said reapportionment of Bacolod is proper, legal and feasible because of the increase in the city’s popul...