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The Sangguniang Panlalawigan of Negros Occidental approved a P60 million supplemental budget for the Service Recognition Incentive of the provincial government employees on Tuesday, Dec. 17.Permanent and casual employees will receive an SRI of P20,000 each.Provincial Administrator Rayfrando Diaz said the payout for the Productivity Enhancement Incentive (PEI) and Collective Negotiation Agreement (CNA) bonus of the employees had already been processed.The provincial government employees are also receiving a PEI of P5,000 each and a P30,000 CNA bonus bringing their total additional bonus to P55,000 this December.*

Mayor Javier Miguel Benitez after the awarding rites with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.* Steven Laborte photoVictorias City in Negros Occidental won the Public Service Campaign Award - City Level at the inaugural “Parangal: Gawad ng Kahusayan sa Komunikasyong Pampubliko” hosted by the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) at the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC) on Monday, Dec.16.The city's winning entry, “Sidlak Victorias: Strengthening Community, Building Opportunity” bested Cebu City and Mati City of Davao Oriental in the highly competitive category, a press release from Victorias City said.The entry, prepared by the Victorias City Information Office, showcased four transformative projects reflecting the city’s commitment to transparency, accountability,...

A driver and his minor companion died when their motorcycle hit a truck parked on the side of the highway in Sitio Buhian, Brgy. To-oy, Himamaylan City, Negros Occidental, Monday night, Dec. 16.The fatalities were the 21-year-old driver from Brgy. Buenavista, and his passenger, a 17-year-old male from Brgy. To-oy, Lt. Arturo Margallo Jr., Himamaylan deputy police chief, told DIGICAST NEGROS on Tuesday.Margallo said while the truck driver was resting, he heard the motorcycle hit his vehicle, which caused severe injuries to the victims.The victims were brought to a hospital and were declared dead on arrival.Margallo said that the owner of the truck and the families of the victims have reached an initial settlement.The families will not file a case against the driver ...

The Bacolod City Police Office (BCPO) reported a drug haul worth P7.1 million in week-long operations in the city from Dec. 9 to 15.Their 13 buy-bust operations led to the arrest of 20 individuals and confiscation of 1,049.8 grams of suspected shabu valued at P7,138,640, the BCPO report said.The latest was the operation in Purok Tilapia, Brgy. 3, where they arrested Tito Feloteo, 55, a high-value drug personality, and Ronald Feloteo, 33, a street-level drug personality, and seized suspected shabu worth P795,600, on Sunday.Meanwhile, the BCPO also reported 12 arrested individuals from their four anti-illegal gambling operations where they confiscated bet money worth P1,407.The BCPO also recorded eight loose firearms and two explosives surrendered.*

La Castellana Mayor Rhummyla Nicor-Mangilimutan (left) visits some of the internally displaced persons  affected by the eruption of Mt. Kanlaon*Mayor Rhummyla Nicor-Mangilimutan of La Castellana, the town hardest hit by the latest eruption of Mt. Kanlaon in Negros Occidental, asked groups and individuals to coordinate their donations with the municipal government.“We follow protocols called the management of donations,” the mayor said in a statement Tuesday, Dec. 17.Nicor-Mangilimutan issued the call following a report that at least 37 individuals staying in an evacuation center fell ill after consuming food given by a certain donor.The mayor said those who want to donate, especially cooked food, must coordinate with the command center’s donation management team to avoid s...

The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) announced on Tuesday, Dec. 17, that a 60-day price freeze is now in effect in Negros Occidental, following the declaration of a state of calamity due to the eruption of Mt. Kanlaon on Dec. 9.“Following the issuance of the Provincial Board Resolution 1446 issued on Dec. 13, 2024, declaring the entire province under a state of calamity, the DTI is imposing a price freeze on basic necessities,” it said in an advisory.The DTI-Negros Occidental said it is informing consumers and retailers that prices of necessities “shall be automatically frozen at their prevailing prices and placed under automatic price control for a period of 60 days unless sooner lifted.”“DTI will monitor regularly the supply and price situation of basic necessities...

A fisherman who was reported missing was found dead in a coastal area at Hacienda San Jose, Brgy. Guadalupe, San Carlos City, Negros Occidental, on Monday, Dec. 16.Ronnie Gonzaga, 30, of Sitio Trozo, Brgy. Buluangan in San Carlos, was found floating near the shore by residents, the police said.The victim was reported missing after he allegedly fell off a boat.There was no foul play during the incident, the police said.*

Road leading to the Kanlaon danger zone at  Crossing Taborda, La Castellana, was closed to vehicles on Monday.*Romeo Subaldo photoThe mandatory deadline for the evacuation of families residing within the 6-kilometer Expanded Danger Zone  surrounding Kanlaon Volcano in two cities and one town in Negros Occidental was met on Monday, Dec 16. They successfully  evacuated 100 percent of the targeted residents for evacuation in Negros Occidental, Raul Fernandez, director of the Office of Civil Defense Western Visayas and chairperson of the Task Force Kanlaon, said. There are 11,305 residents now in evacuation centers in Negros Occidental  with 8,188 in La Castellana, 2,465 in  La Carlota City and  382 in Bago City, an OCD report as of 11 a.m. Monday showed. ...

Bago City Mayor Nicholas Yulo at a press conference  on Monday.*Ronnie Baldonado photoThe Bago City government declared a state of calamity on Monday, Dec. 16, to enable the release of its Quick Response Fund (QRF) to aid residents affected by Kanlaon Volcano’s eruption, Mayor Nicholas Yulo said.“This is to access the city's Quick Response Fund (QRF) that will be utilized by our City Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council for necessary interventions” amounting to about P18M, Yulo said.The Bago City Sangguniang Panlungsod approved the recommendation of the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council for the declaration of a state of calamity in a special session presided by Vice Mayor Ramon Torres.“The declaration of a state of calamity will expedite rel...

Romeo Carlos Ting Jr., Karol Joseph Chiu and  Jose Marty Go (l-r)*Bacolod City Legal Officer Romeo Carlos Ting Jr. has resigned and has been replaced by Secretary to the Mayor Karol Joseph Chiu.Assistant Secretary to the Mayor Jose Marty Go will take over Chiu’s vacated post, the mayor’s spokesperson Caesar Distrito said.“Ting wanted to return to private practice as he had neglected it during the years that he was serving as CLO”, Distrito said. The resignation of Ting takes effect on Tuesday, Dec. 17.Bacolod Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez, in a statement, thanked Ting “for his invaluable service to the City of Bacolod”.Benitez said since Ting’s appointment as City Legal Officer in June 2022, he has “demonstrated exceptional skill, dedication, and profes...