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The Negros Power and Electric Corp. electricity rates are down 55 centavos per kilowatt-hour (kWh) this June.For this month’s billing cycle, residential consumers will pay only ₱11.14 per kWh, a significant drop from ₱11.69 per kWh last month, a Negros Power statement said Monday, June 16.This means a household consuming 200 kWh per month can expect to save around ₱110, providing extra funds for groceries, school expenses, or other essentials, it said.“This rate adjustment is part of our ongoing commitment to ease the financial strain on our consumers,” the Negros Power statement said.“We understand the daily realities families face — and we’re doing our part to help lighten the load,” it said.“This month's lower rates result from strategic and efficient energy manageme...

Portia Familiaran and Bacolod Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez at the BCGC grounds, which she said she improved at her own expense.*Portia Familiaran FB pageThe City Legal Office is investigating the uprooting of plants at the Bacolod City Government Center grounds, City Legal Officer Karol Joseph Chiu said on Monday, June 16.Some Bacolod Public Order and Safety Office employees were reportedly alarmed when personnel of Portia Familiaran, wife of Vice Mayor El Cid Familiaran, uprooted some plants on the side and front of the BCGC grounds on June 12.The Office of the Building Official immediately reported the incident to the police.Chiu said they are waiting for the investigation report of the Office of the Building Administrator to determine the course of action to be take...

Fishing boats docked at the Tambobo Bay port in Barangay Bonbonbon, Siaton in Negros Oriental, showing garbage dumped in the waters,*PNA/Mary Judaline F. Partlow photoThe Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) is warning the public against consuming shellfish and “alamang” (krill/small shrimp) after issuing a red tide advisory for Siit Bay in Siaton, Negros Oriental.The BFAR-7 (Central Visayas) office found high levels of harmful toxins in water samples collected from the bay, Florencia Mepaña, BFAR-Negros Oriental provincial chief, said Monday, June 16.Mepaña said they are also requesting shellfish meat samples from Siit Bay for further laboratory testing.“Before declaring a red tide occurrence, we need to monitor a particular area for three consecutive weeks to ...

A motorcycle driver died after he hit a dog and a Ceres bus in Brgy. Bonawon, Siaton town in Negros Oriental on Friday, June 13.The police identified the fatality only as alias “Dondon”.The victim’s motorcycle hit a dog crossing the road that caused him to be thrown on to the opposite lane where he was hit by a Ceres bus.Due to the impact of the collision, the victim was thrown on to the windshield of the bus and sustained serious injuries.He was brought to a hospital but was declared dead on arrival.The police are reminding the public to always be mindful of their pets and not to allow them to cross streets to avoid such incidents.*

There are 3,724 La Castellana, Negros Occidental, residents displaced by Kanlaon Volcano’s unrest who have been moved to new evacuation centers to allow the use of schools they had been occupying for the opening of classes, a Provincial Social Welfare and Development Office (PSWDO) report said on Monday, June 16.There are 1,779 other La Castellana Internally Displace Persons (IDPs) now staying outside of evacuation centers, the PSWDO report also said.Ninety emergency shelter tents have been set up on land owned by La Castellana LGU in Sitio Villacaña, Barangay Robles, for the IDPs from Brgy Cabagnaan, Remuel Lajo, La Castellana Public Information Officer, said.He said the IDPs from Brgy Biak-na-Bato, Mansalanao, Masulog and Sag-ang have been transferred to the covered courts of...

Comelec Chairperson George Garcia*PNA file photoThe Commission on Elections (Comelec) has reset the scheduled voter registration for the upcoming Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE) from July to late October this year."Surely, this voter registration from July 1 to 11 will not push through. It will happen in the last week of October after the Bangsamoro Parliamentary Elections and will last until July 2026," Comelec Chairperson George Garcia said in an interview on Monday.The first-ever Bangsamoro Parliamentary Elections (BPE) is set on Oct. 13.“Voter registration cannot continue because 11 days are not enough. The Bangsamoro (voters) might get confused if voter registration will be conducted and they won't be able to vote in the BPE. The registration is for ...

The police arrested three persons and seized suspected shabu worth P238,000 in a buy-bust operation in Brgy. Tagukon, Kabankalan City, Negros Occidental, on Friday, June 13.Arrested were “Francis”, 44, “Karen”, 34, and “Joem”, all of Brgy. Tagukon, the Negros Occidental Police Provincial Office (NOCPPO) reported Monday.The arrest was made after Francis, who was the subject of the operation, conspired with Karen and handed over a sachet of suspected shabu to a poseur buyer, the report said.Joem, who was present during the police operation, was also arrested.Recovered from them were 20 sachets of suspected shabu weighing 35 grams, the NOCPPO said.Also seized from them were the buy-bust money, cash, an improvised glass tooter, digital weighing scale, and other non-drug evi...

A makeshift classroom for Kanlaon Volcano affected learners.*DepEd NegOcc photoAll 576 schools under the Schools Division of Negros Occidental, including those affected by the Mt. Kanlaon eruption, opened the first day of classes smoothly on Monday , June 16.Around 325,000 learners were welcomed in schools across the various municipalities of the province, a Schools Division of Negros Occidental statement said.“We welcome all learners, teachers, and parents to this new school year. The Division hopes that this year will be productive for all, especially our learners. The learning of our children is the most important goal we must strive for — against all odds”, Schools Division Superintendent Anthony H. Liobet said.Despite the recent challenges brought about by the continue...

Modular tents are set up on a school campus in Canlaon City,*Over 2,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Canlaon City, Negros Oriental, have transferred to modular tents to allow the schools that were used as evacuation centers to open on Monday, June 16.Edna Lhou Masicampo, Canlaon City Public Information Officer, said the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) donated the tents to accommodate the IDPs in the six schools that were previously utilized as evacuation centers.The schools are the Jose B. Cardenas Memorial High School Main Campus, Villa Iowa Elementary School, Pula Elementary School, Malaiba Elementary School, Masulog Elementary School, and Masulog High School.“The IDPs are in the sheltered tents and not in the classrooms. They will not be sharing the facilities wi...

The Negros Oriental Police Provincial Office awarded the Dumaguete City Police Station for the arrest of the most wanted person in the Negros Island Region for statutory sexual assault during a ceremony at the Camp Lt. Col. Francisco Fernandez Jr. in Sibulan, Negros Oriental, on Monday, June 16.The Dumaguete Police Station received a commendation from NORPPO for the arrest of a man tagged as the most wanted person in the regional and provincial level for statutory sexual assault in Brgy. Poblacion 7, Dumaguete, on June 7,The award was received by Lt. Col. Don Richmon Conag, acting Dumaguete police chief.The arrest of the most wanted person is a testament of their commitment and a demonstration of how collaboration with the community works in their advantage, a police statement...