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The Police Regional Office Negros Island Region (PRO NIR) honored its top-performing personnel in administration and operations during an awards ceremony at Camp Alfredo M. Montelibano Sr. in Bacolod City on Monday, August 11.Brig. Gen. Arnold Thomas C. Ibay, PRO NIR regional director, led the awarding rites.Negros Occidental Board Member Rita Angela S. Gatuslao, who was the event’s guest of honor, praised the relentless dedication of the Philippine National Police, particularly the PRO NIR personnel, in their sworn duty to protect lives and maintain peace and order.The awards were a "testament to the hard work, integrity, and sacrifices made by police officers in the line of duty", she said.The awardees for outstanding performance were:· Best Senior Police Commissioned...

The Progressive Alliance of Capitol Employees (PACE) thanked the Negros Occidental provincial government, led by Governor Eugenio Jose V. Lacson, for implementing the second tranche of salary increases and other benefits.“Thank you for your unwavering support and commitment to the workforce,” Randy M. Peacita, PACE chairman, said in a statement on Monday, August 11.“We commend the timely implementation of the second tranche salary increase, which reflects the administration’s dedication to upholding fair and progressive compensation practices,” Peacita said.This proactive action not only ensures financial stability for Capitol employees but also boosts morale and motivation in public service, he said.He also thanked the governor for granting their medical allowance, which g...

Bacolod City Mayor Greg Gasataya said that crowds began queuing at Robinsons Bacolod as early as 8 p.m. on Saturday for the start of voter registration on Sunday morning.*Greg Gasataya Facebook page photoThe number of voter registrants for the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE) in the Negros Island Region has exceeded expectations, Lionel Marco Castillano, director of the Commission on Elections-NIR, said on Sunday night, August 10.There was an especially large turnout of youth voters aged 15 to 17 who are qualified to vote in the SK elections, he said.The 10-day registration of voters ended on Sunday, but Castillano said they would release the total number of NIR registrants on Monday since they had yet to tally the numbers from Negros Occidental, Negros Orient...

The Bacolod City Police Office (BCPO) apprehended four individuals in two separate buy-bust operations and seized 600 grams of suspected shabu worth P4,080,000 on Sunday night, August 10.At 8:34 p.m. in Zone 5, Barangay Handumanan, a team from the City Drug Enforcement Unit (CDEU) led by Lt. Col. Antonio Benitez Jr. conducted a buy-bust operation that led to the arrest of alias Levi of Brgy. Handumanan, and alias Raegil, of Brgy. Estefania in Bacolod City.Authorities seized roughly 520 grams of suspected shabu from the two suspects, valued at an estimated P3,536,000.Minutes later, at around 8:42 p.m. in Purok Grasya, Barangay Singcang-Airport, operatives from Police Station 8, under Capt, Greeky Cayao, carried out another buy-bust.The operation led to the arrest of alias Ev...

House Speaker Martin Romualdez at Visayas Caucus meeting.*Rep. Jeffrey Ferrer (Neg. Occ., 4th District), chairman of the Negros Island Region in the Visayas Caucus, on Sunday, August 10, said they will ensure that the House of Representatives acts on NIR’s special concerns.House Speaker Martin Romualdez convened the Visayas Caucus on August 6 to give the Negros Island Region, along with Western, Central, and Eastern Visayas, a stronger voice in Congress.During the meeting, Ferrer was named the regional chairperson for the NIR, while Rep. Mercedes Alvarez (Neg. Occ., 6th District) was appointed as deputy chairperson.Ferrer said the caucus was convened for a stronger Visayas.He and Alvarez have been tasked with ensuring NIR’s special concerns are heard and acted on in...

NEA Administrator Antonio Mariano Almeda (left) and Education Secretary Sonny Angara at the closing ceremony of the three-day NEA-Electric Cooperative Convergence at SMX Convention Center in Bacolod City on Saturday.*NEA photoThe National Electrification Administration (NEA) has reaffirmed its commitment to energize all last-mile schools across the country within the next three years.NEA Administrator Antonio Mariano Almeda called for support of electric cooperatives (ECs) to fulfill the mandate, in the presence of Department of Education (DepEd) Secretary Sonny Angara, during the closing ceremony of the three-day NEA-EC Convergence at SMX Convention Center in Bacolod City on Saturday, August 9.He said “2,359, remember this number of our last-mile schools that we still have to ...

A 19-year-old aeronautics student died after his motorcycle crashed into a sugarcane field along the provincial road in Purok Seniora, Barangay Salvacion, Murcia, Negros Occidental, early Sunday morning, Aug. 10.Capt. Honey Labaro, Murcia deputy police chief, identified the victim only as “Clyde,” a resident of Brgy. Alangilan, Bacolod City.Police said a concerned citizen discovered the victim at around 5 a.m. lying in the sugarcane field with multiple bruises and a head injury, and immediately reported it to authorities.Motorcycle debris was also found at the scene.Initial investigation suggests the victim may have lost control of his motorcycle before veering off the road.Responding officers noted that no helmet was found at the crash site and that the area was poorly...

Bacolod Rep. Alfredo Abelardo “Albee” Benitez*Bacolod Rep. Alfredo Abelardo “Albee” Benitez has filed House Bill No. 3379, or the National Autism Program bill, intended to provide support to an estimated 1.2 million Filipinos, including almost 350,000 children, living with autism.Benitez, in his explanatory note, said, “Given the cost of the assessment and therapies, it is unlikely for low- and even medium-income families to regularly afford these life-changing therapies for their children.”The United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) revealed that poverty rates are 50 percent higher in households with children with disabilities, he said.“It is more than crucial that the government makes available free or affordable services for the diagnosis and ther...

Cadiz City Mayor Salvador Escalante Jr.*Mayor Salvador Escalante Jr. of Cadiz City, Negros Occidental, who has been just been elected League of Cities of the Philippines (LCP) vice president for the Visayas, has pledged to be "the voice of the Negros Island Region (NIR)" within the organization.Escalante, who was also recently elected president of the Negros Association of Chief Executives (ACE), was voted into his new LCP role during an election held in Manila on Friday, August 8.The new LCP national chairman is Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte and its president is San Juan City Mayor Francis Zamora.Other officers from the Negros include Bacolod City Mayor Greg Gasataya as the LCP's focal mayor for mental health awareness, and Himamaylan City Mayor Raymund Tongson as the rep...

Rep. Javier Miguel “Javi” Benitez (Neg. Occ., 3rd District)*"If given a new mandate, leadership must not only preserve what works, it must also lead with competence, vision, and the energy to turn new challenges into opportunities," Rep. Javier Miguel “Javi” Benitez (Neg. Occ., 3rd District) said on Saturday, August 9.Benitez said that was his reaction to the stand of Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson on maintaining the status quo for the Philippine Councilors League (PCL), Liga ng mga Barangay (ABC), and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) leadership in Negros Occidental."I have always stood with Governor Bong, as has my family, in both personal and political terms. His call for continuity ensures alignment and sustained growth, vital foundations for progress," Benitez said."Continuity build...