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The Negros Occidental provincial government will start selling P20 per kilo rice this weekend sourced from a farmer-irrigators group,  Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson said on Monday, June 9. The sale will start in Pulupandan town this weekend, and after that they will be visiting other local government units, he said.There will be 50 sacks of rice allocated for the P20 per kilo rice program this month, he said.Lacson said they have not heard from the National Food Authority informing them that they are ready to provide rice to the province for the P20 per kilo rice program.“I guess it's because they prioritized Bacolod,” he said.“We are not waiting for NFA anymore, the provincial government is sourcing its rice for the program from the Federation of Irrigators Association of ...

Rockwell Land Corp. chief executive officer Nestor Padilla (left) and Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez (center) seal with a handshake the signing of the deed of donation for the 2,130-square meter land donated by the property developer to the Bacolod in the presence of Rep. Greg Gasataya on Monday.*Bacolod PIO photoBacolod City government officials on Monday, June 9, broke ground for the establishment of essential emergency facilities on the land donated by the Lopez family-led Rockwell Land Corp. in Barangay Mandalagan.Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez and Rockwell Land chief executive officer Nestor Padilla signed the deed of donation for the 2,130 square meter land, in the presence of Bacolod Rep. Greg Gasataya and other city officials.“We found that this location would be mo...

A 16-year-old boy died while a 5-year-old child was injured when they were electrocuted in a rice field in Purok Lopues, Brgy. Dulao, Bago City, Negros Occidental, on Saturday, June 7.The 16-year-old boy from Brgy. Sagasa, Bago City, died while he was planting rice.The victim was planting rice and moving backwards and did not notice a hanging live wire from a bamboo post, the police said.The victim threw the wire and it hit the 5-year-old boy who was playing nearby.The mother of the 5-year-old was able to grab him immediately, which saved him, the police said.The victim’s family and the owner of the rice plantation have agreed on a settlement, the police said.*

Secretary Jose Francisco “Kiko” Benitez turns over the Third District leadership to his nephew, Representative-elect Javier Miguel “Javi” Benitez (right)*Secretary Jose Francisco “Kiko” Benitez, Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) director general, authored 20 laws and pushed billions of pesos worth of infrastructure projects for the Third District of Negros Occidental as its congressman for two terms.Benitez turned over the Third District leadership to his nephew, Representative-elect Javier Miguel “Javi” Benitez, at rites at Nature’s Village Resort in Talisay City, on Saturday, June 7.“Let us stand behind Javi. Let’s make sure the progress we’ve started in Metro 3rd continues, and that the legacy of our shared work lives on,” he said.The TESDA ...

Luis Gamboa Jalandoni*The Pilgrims for Peace and the National Democratic Front -Negros on Monday, June 9, paid tribute to Luis Gamboa Jalandoni, former NDF chairman and chief peace negotiator who passed away in Utrecht, The Netherlands, on Saturday.Jalandoni, 90, from Silay City, Negros Occidental, was a former Diocese of Bacolod priest before he joined the revolutionary movement.The Pilgrims for Peace, in a statement, called Jalandoni a “gentle warrior for just peace in the Philippines”.The “outpouring of accolades for his laudable journey of solidarity with the Filipino masses underscore Ka Louie’s grit and integrity as a fighter for social justice in the Philippines”, it said.The group commended Jalandoni for “his life of exemplary service” and for carrying...

The grounbreaking rites in Sagay City on Monday*The Police Regional Office-Negros Island Region and the Sagay City government broke ground for the construction of the P25 million Sagay City Component Police Station at Brgy. Poblacion II, Sagay City, on Monday, June 9.PRO-NIR Deputy Director for Administration PCol. Dennis Esguerra, Rep. Alfredo Marañon III (Neg. Occ., 2nd District), Mayor Narciso Javelosa Jr., and Sagay Police Chief PLt. Col. Alvimar Flores led the groundbreaking rites, along with the city councilors and uniformed personnel.The Sagay CCPS Standard Building will be built on a 1,500-square-meter donated property and will feature a two-story building with facilities such as office spaces, quarters, detention cells, and conference rooms, a press release from Sagay ...

The crime scene in Silay City. *Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chairman George Erwin Garcia said on Monday, June 9, he hopes the fatal Election Day shooting incident in Silay City, Negros Occidental would serve as a lesson not only in the involved barangay, but also in the entire region.“I hope the case that happened in Silay would be a learning lesson. Not just in the barangay but in the entire Negros Island Region (NIR) and definitely, there is a case. Therefore, we will handle the case properly and hope we will be able to resolve the case immediately,” Garcia said in a press conference at Seda Capitol Central in Bacolod City the sidelines of a Comelec’s post-election evaluation meeting,However, he believes the violent incident in Silay City in the last national and local ...

The photo of the CLMMRH isolation room posted by Cayla Mitch Tecson on her Facebook page*Cleanliness and safety remain top priorities at the Corazon Locsin Montelibano Memorial Regional Hospital (CLMMRH) in Bacolod City, Dr. Joan Cerrada, CLMMRH head, assured on Sunday, June 8.“Our leadership and staff are committed to transparency, accountability, and continuous improvement. We welcome feedback, and we’re using it to shape better, safer, and more responsive care,” she said.Cerrada, issued the assurance following a Fecebook post of Cayla Mitch Tecson on her family’s recent experience at the CLMMRH Emergency Department.“I want to thank her for speaking up. Feedback, especially the kind that points out where we need to improve, is essential, and I take it seriously,” Cerra...

Luis Jalandoni and his wife, Coni Ledesma, at a peace forum in Bacolod in 2016.*CPG photoNegrense Luis Gamboa Jalandoni , former National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) chairman and chief peace negotiator, passed away in Utrecht, The Netherlands, Saturday morning.Jalandoni, who was from Silay City, was 90.“Ka Louie passed away peacefully at around 9:05 in the morning in Utrecht, the Netherlands (03:05pm Philippine time) on June 7,” the Communist Party of the Philippines announced.“In his final moments, Ka Louie was surrounded by comrades, his wife Ka Coni, and his family”, it said.His wife Maria Consuelo "Coni" Ledesma, is a former nun and school principal from Silay City.Jalandoni was a Negros priest and head of the Social Action Center of the D...

The jeep that fell on its side l in Brgy. Salvacion, Murcia.* Jahani Yap Amolo photoEight persons on their way to a graduation ceremony were injured after their jeepney fell on its side near a sugarcane field in Brgy. Salvacion, Murcia, Negros Occidental, on Sunday, June 8.Maj. Sherwin Fernandez, Murcia Police Chief, said the Handumanan-Libertad jeepney driven by Gilbert Salumag, 27, of Purok Planeta, Brgy. Taculing, Bacolod City, fell on its side after its front right wheel suddenly separated from the vehicle.Injured were the driver and the passengers identified as “Lanie”, 59, “Yvonie”, 55, “Mae”, 22, “Michelle”, 47, “Alicia”, 79, “Jayd”, 48, and “Shell”, 52, all of Brgy Minautok, Calatrava town.Fernandez said that they were on their way to Central Philippine Adventist Co...