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Cadiz Mayor Salvador Escalante, left, and Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson.*Negros Occidental Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson said on Sunday, Oct. 26, that he is in favor of local government units taking over the building of classrooms and road concreting.“Funds for these projects should be downloaded from the DPWH (Department of Public Works and Highways) budget” to the LGUs, Lacson said.Lacson was reacting to the announcement last week that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has ordered that funds be directly sent to LGUs to help expedite the construction of more classrooms to address the acute shortage across the country.Palace press officer Claire Castro said the Department of Education (DepEd) and the DPWH were expected to sign a memorandum of agreement (MOA) with LGUs on this matter....

A government employee classified as a high-value individual (HVI) was arrested in a late-night buy-bust operation in Barangay Poblacion, Sta. Catalina, Negros Oriental, on Saturday, Oct. 25.The operation was carried out at around 11:41 p.m. by combined operatives of the Provincial Drug Enforcement Unit (PDEU) and Provincial Intelligence Unit (PIU) of the Negros Oriental Police Provincial Office (NOrPPO), with support from the Sta. Catalina Municipal Police Station in coordination with the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA).Police said the suspect, a government employee, was arrested after he sold a sachet of suspected shabu to a police poseur-buyer in a transaction monitored under PDEA Control No. 8-00-10252025-019.Recovered from him were about 13 grams of suspected shab...

Negros Power mitigated the impact of a major power system maintenance shutdown by the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP), preventing an all-day power interruption for nearly 50 percent of originally affected consumers.The NGCP scheduled outage occurred from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, October 25, to facilitate essential maintenance of their facility affecting Bacolod–Alijis 69kV line.The maintenance work directly impacted Negros Power’s Murcia and Alijis substations, which collectively serve 93,994 customers.However, through the utility’s advanced load transfer system, the net number of affected consumers was drastically reduced to 47,102, a press release from Negros Power said Sunday.This crucial intervention demonstrates the effectiveness of Negros Power’s...

Authorities seized more than P1.3 million worth of suspected shabu in three separate anti-illegal drug operations conducted across the province on Friday and Saturday, Oct. 24 and 25.In Victorias City, operatives arrested a drug personality identified as alias “Bert”, 25, during a buy-bust operation at Tirad Paz Street, Brgy. 6, on Friday.Confiscated from him were nine sachets of suspected shabu weighing about 15 grams, valued at P102,000.Meanwhile, in Bacolod City, two major buy-bust operations conducted by the City Drug Enforcement Unit (CDEU) of the Bacolod City Police Office (BCPO) Friday and Saturday led to the arrest of three suspects and the confiscation of about 140 grams of suspected shabu with a standard drug price of P952,000.Among those arrested were alias “Jo”,...

Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson at the Christmas tree launch at SM City Bacolod.*Ronnie Baldonado photoNegros Occidental Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson led the Christmas tree lighting at SM City Bacolod on Sunday, Oct. 26.“This year's theme, ‘Unwrapping Sweet Surprises’, captures what Christmas brings to our lives: simple joys, unexpected blessings, and the warmth of love shared with family and friends”, he said.“But as we unwrap these sweet surprises, let us also remember the greatest gift of all, the birth of our Savior, Lord Jesus Christ. His coming into the world in utmost humility and simplicity reminds us that the truest form of celebration lies in our gratitude, compassion, and faith,” the governor said.The governor thanked SM City Bacolod for again bringing light and cheer to N...

Kanlaon Volcano’s minor explosive eruption as seen from Canlaon City in Negros Oriental, Friday night.*Canlaon City Administrator Mamerto Bermil photo  A minor explosive eruption occurred at Kanlaon Volcano from 8:05 p.m. to 8:08 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 24, causing ashfall and sulfuric odor in several barangays across three cities and two towns in Negros Occidental.A booming sound was heard in Brgy Pula, Canlaon City, in Negros Oriental, during the eruption, the Office of Civil Defense-Negros Island Region (OCD-NIR) reported.The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) said Kanlaon remains under Alert Level 2.No evacuations were ordered as of Friday evening, but LGUs near Kanlaon remained on alert.The m...

The woman giving birth on the sidewalk*screengrab from Spincer Ayco videoA woman safely delivered her baby on the sidewalk in front of the Corazon Locsin Montelibano Memorial Regional Hospital (CLMMRH) on Thursday, Oct. 23.CLMMRH, in a statement on Friday, confirmed that a precipitous delivery occurred on the sidewalk of Lacson Street as seen in a video posted by Spincer Ayco that went viral on social media.The CLMMRH Nursing Service and the Outpatient Department (OPD) personnel immediately responded to provide assistance to the mother and her baby.“The patient was promptly brought into the hospital for appropriate medical care. Both mother and baby are now under close monitoring and are in stable condition under the care of our medical team,” the CLMMRH statement sa...

The Negros Island Region is faced with a shortage of 6,298 classrooms, the Department of Education NIR spokesman said on Friday, Oct. 24.They welcome the news that President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. is urging the local government units (LGUs) to ensure the timely completion of classroom construction that adhere to proper standards, DepEd NIR spokesperson Almyr Caezar Dequiña said.“We welcome this and we commit to supporting our LGUs in ensuring that we address the classroom backlog, and moving forward, ensure timely completion of projects for the benefit of our learners and teachers,” he said.*

A bread delivery helper died while his driver was injured in a three-vehicle collision at Sitio Malasbalas, Brgy. Orong, Kabankalan City, Negros Occidental, on Thursday morning, Oct. 23.The police identified the fatality as Poldo Dela Cruz, a resident of Brgy. Camugao, Kabankalan City, who was riding on a Kawasaki Barako tricycle driven by Julian Jacolbe, 39, of Brgy. Hilamonan.Initial investigation showed that the tricycle and a Mitsubishi Fuso panel van driven by Asher Perez, 44, were both traveling in the same direction toward Kabankalan when Perez allegedly lost control and hit the rear of the tricycle, which was moving slowly because of a road construction.The panel van then crashed into an oncoming Toyota Hilux driven by Cecilia Sonsona, 52, a regional manager of Expressi...

Dengue deaths in Negros Occidental have risen to 12, but the number of dengue cases in the province this year are 9.49 percent lower than in 2024, the Provincial Health Office (PHO) reported on Friday, Oct.24.The were 5,033 dengue cases in Negros Occidental from January 1 to October 18, which are 528 less compared to the same period last year.The local government units with the most number of dengue cases are Bago City with 1,117, followed by La Carlota City with 460, Kabankalan City – 455, San Carlos City – 260, and Isabela 239.The dengue virus is transmitted by day biting Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus mosquitoes.*