Top Stories

The scene of the crime in Calatrava.*PNP photoAnother village chief was gunned down in Negros Occidental.Brgy. Lalong, Calatrava chief Benjamin Javoc, 54, was shot to death by 10 unidentified men Friday, August 26.The suspects then carted away the victim’s belongings and P20,000 in cash.The police are investigating if the crime was insurgency-related.On Wednesday, August 24, gunmen also killed the chief of Barangay Cabcab, Isabela, which was also said to be insurgency-related.

San Carlos Bishop Gerardo Alminaza at the Green SONA on Friday*Planned infrastructure projects in Western Visayas are threatening important ecosystems, San Carlos Bishop Gerardo Alminaza said Friday, August 26.Alminaza was one the speakers at the Green SONA (State of Nature Assessment) with the theme “The continuing assault on nature: What are the ecological options?” at the University of St. La Salle in Bacolod City.The planned Patag-Calatrava Road runs through protected forest in Northern Negros, and the proposed Panay-Guimaras-Negros bridge threatens the critically endangered dolphins in the Iloilo-Guimaras Strait, he said.A Green SONA resolution said that the Northern Negros Natural Park and the Philippine forests in general are threatened primarily by human activities,...

Henjie Cuadra, the alleged leader of the investment scam.*NOCPPO photoOne of the suspected leaders of an alleged investment “scam” in Negros Occidental was arrested Thursday, August 25, at San Gregorio Village, Binalbagan.Nabbed was Henjie Cuadra, who was said to be one of the leaders and founders of RGS Corporation that allegedly scammed millions from its investors.His apprehension was by virtue of an arrest warrant for syndicated estafa issued by Bacolod City Regional Trial Court Judge Maria Lina Palencia Gonzaga on August 15.No bail was recommended for his temporary liberty.Cuadra denied the allegations against him. He did not escape, he had only gon on vacation, Cuadra said.The police urged the victims of the “investment scam” to file complaints.*

Dr. Jessica Fama, medical specialist 3 of the Provincial Health Office*Twenty-five COVID-19 deaths have been reported in Negros Occidental this August, 10 of which happened this week, the Provincial Incident Management Team (PIMT) reported.Negros Occidental also had 238 active COVID-19 cases on Friday, August 26, the PIMT added.Of the 10 deaths reported on Thursday, five of the fatalities were unvaccinated against COVID-19 and five had no records of immunization, Dr. Jessica Fama, medical specialist 3 of the Provincial Health Office, said.She said the majority of those hit by COVID-19 in Negros Occidental who died were unvaccinated, had comorbidities or were senior citizens.The Provincial Health Office is now campaigning for the vaccination of children with the start of...

Mayor Javier Miguel Benitez sought the help of the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) and the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) on Friday, August 26, to investigate the recent tremors that shook two barangays in Victorias City and damaged classrooms at the Negros Occidental National Science High School (NONSHS).Benitez in a letter to Raul Laput, MGB Western Visayas regional director, said that on August 24 and 25 it was reported to his office that ”earthquakes” were felt in barangays 10 and 14 in Victorias.A three-story building with several classrooms at the NONSHS was affected “showing damage which appear to be worrisome, if not significant and substantial”, Benitez said.For the safety, security and peace of mind of the school officials, students a...

Cadiz City Mayor Salvador Escalante*Mayor Salvador Escalante has suspended all non-essential gatherings in Cadiz City, Negros Occidental, effective immediately because of the continued rise in COVID-19 cases.Escalante issued Executive Order No. SGE-018 -2022, Series of 2022, on Friday, August 26, suspending the application and issuance of all permits for non-essential gatherings, and revoking all permits already issued.Cadiz City is currently under Alert Level 1.There is a need to exercise preventive intervention to stem the continued rise of confirmed COVID-19 cases for the health and safety of Cadiz residents, most especially those with pre-existing co-morbidities as well as the elderly population, Escalante said in his EO.He identified non-essential gatherings as dan...

The victim was declared dead on arrival at a hospital.*Pontevedra PNP photoA man was hacked to death by his neighbors over a land dispute at Purok Cadena de Amor, Barangay San Isidro, Pontevedra, Negros Occidental, Wednesday, August 24.Killed was Eric Galope, 37.The victim and the suspects - Rex Salme, 59, and his son Bobby, 34, had just attended a hearing at the barangay hall on their land conflict when the incident happened.When they were outside the barangay hall, the victim made a comment to Rex Salme, saying, “Kuha-a ang tangke. Imo man na (Take the tank, it’s yours).”This could have triggered the suspect to attack Galope with his bolo.But the victim was able to run, only to be caught by the suspect’s son, Rex.The victim succumbed to 10 hack wounds and was ...

Acting Administrator David Alba of the Sugar Regulatory Administration at the 68th Philippine Sugar Technologists Association Inc. national convention at the SMX Convention Center in Bacolod City, Thursday, August 25.*Acting Administrator David Alba of the Sugar Regulatory Administration stressed the need to prepare against threats to the sugar industry, including possible moves to resurrect the call for liberalization.“While we do not want to take cognizant of the rumor mill, there have been whispers to resurrect the issue of liberalization and that is something we have to prepare against,” Alba said in his speech at the 68th Philippine Sugar Technologists Association Inc. national convention at the SMX Convention Center in Bacolod City, Thursday, August 25.He said while the s...

A pickup vehicle hit by the bullets.*Police Station 3 photoAn ice cream warehouse was strafed at Bangga Subay, Barangay Mandalagan in Bacolod City early Thursday, August 25, and left one employee injured.Delivery driver Anthony Glaraga, 34, of Talisay City, was playing chess beside the warehouse when unidentified men opened fire.Glaraga sustained a gunshot wound to his stomach. He is now in a stable condition.Capt. Armilyn Vargas, Police Station 3 chief, said that a pick-up vehicle that was parked in front of the warehouse was also hit by the bullets.The police are still investigating the incident, as the motive has yet to be established.