Top Stories

The site of the encounter between joint troops of the Philippine Army’s 62nd Infantry Battalion and the Philippine National Police 1st Negros Occidental Provincial Mobile Force and remnants of New People’s Army Northern Negros Front in Calatrava, Negros Occidental on Wednesday*  An alleged  remnant of the dismantled Northern Negros Front of the New People’s Army (NPA) was killed in a clash with joint government troops in Barangay Cambayobo, Calatrava, Negros Occidental, Wednesday afternoon, May 22.The Philippine Army’s 3rd Infantry Division (3ID), in a report on Thursday, identified the fatality as Jeje Redobles, whose body the government troops recovered from the encounter site. Maj. Gen. Marion Sison, 3ID commander, lauded the troops of the 79 Infantry Battalion and...

Bacolod Mayor Alfredo Abelaredo Benitez (center) with Malou Pineda, Nestor Padilla and  Hubert Young (l-r) cut the  ribbon at the grand opening of the Coco Ichibanya and Mitsuyado Sei-men restaurants on Thursday.*Ronnie Baldonado photo The opening of two new restaurants serving authentic Japanese food at the Pavilions at Nara Residences by Rockwell in  Barangay Mandalagan ushers Bacolod into a new ground of development, Bacolod Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez said on  Thursday, April 23.“This is already  a signal that  Bacolod is on its way to  its vision to become a super city”, said Benitez, who joined the grand opening of the Coco Ichibanya and Mitsuyado Sei-men restaurants. Also at the event were Bacolod Councilor Em Ang, Hubert Young -&nbs...

The police have  filed charges against 18 “bookies” collectors  for violation of Republic Act  9287, or illegal gambling, in Negros Occidental,  after  PBrig. Gen. Jack Wanky, Western Visayas regional police director, ordered a heightened campaign against all forms of illegal gambling. Bookies is an illegal numbers game that uses winning numbers from small-town lottery (STL) draws of the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO). The 18  were arrested  in separate police  operations in the  municipalities of Candoni, San Enrique, E. B. Magalona and Cauayan, and the cities of Escalante, Bago, La Carlota, Sipalay and Victorias  in Negros Occidental.* 

A Silaynon was stabbed to death while two others, including his son, were injured by a pedicab driver in Hacienda Panaogao, Brgy. 4, Silay City, Negros Occidental, Wednesday, May 22. Killed was a   55-year-old laborer whose name was withheld by the police. The police said the victim’s son and the suspect had a confrontation over previous grudges, resulting in a heated argument. The suspect took a knife and stabbed the victim’s 31-year-old son hitting his abdomen. The father of the victim attempted to pacify them, causing the suspect to stab him in the abdomen, too, resulting in his death. The 31-year-old victim then took a bolo and hacked the suspect, hitting his forearm. A 25-year-old man tried to pacify them was injured on his left h...

Power Watch Negros Secretary-General Wennie Sancho* Utility watch group, Power Watch Negros, called the increase in electricity rates due to added costs in generation charge an “injustice to consumers” and called on government power regulatory agencies to ensure a balance between companies’ profitability and consumers welfare. Power Watch Negros Secretary-General Wennie Sancho said  on Thursday, May 23,  that he is disgusted with the generation charges being shouldered by  consumers, who are reeling from inflation and high cost of living. This month, the three electric cooperatives in Negros Occidental announced increases in their respective electricity rates by P2 to P3 per kilowatt-hour. The increase was attributed to the high generation...

Two high-value drug targets were arrested by the police after they seized suspected shabu amounting to P1 million from them in a buy-bust operation in Sitio Nawasa, Brgy. San Jose, Binalbagan, Negros Occidental, on Wednesday, May 22. Arrested were Rex Navarro, 47, a construction worker, and Domingo Robles, 45, a farmer, the police said. The police seized suspected shabu weighing 156 grams  with a street drug price of P1,060,800. The suspects are now detained at  the  Binalbagan  Police Station and will be charged for violation of  Republic Act 9165 or Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002. The drug evidence will be turned over to Negros Occidental Provincial Forensic Unit for laboratory examination.* 

Historian Modesto Sa-onoy,  accompanied by his wife Verobina, turns the book over to Victorias Mayor Javier  Miguel Benitez.* Victorias City has embarked on another milestone with the launching of its first-ever history book written by renowned Negrosanon Historian Modesto Sa-onoy on Thursday, May 23. “This book captures the essence of who we are,” Mayor Javier Miguel Benitez said in his message. He emphasized that the legacy of Victorias is preserved for future generations through the history book. The book, titled “History of Victorias 1845-1945”, features the beginnings of Victorias from being an ancient settlement known as Malihaw until it grew as a thriving municipality in the early post-war era.Benitez said  among the remarkable ...

Witnessing the event were Majority Leader Manuel Jose "Mannix" Dalipe and Abang Lingkod Party-list Rep. Joseph Stephen  Paduano.Bacolod City Vice Mayor El Cid Familiaran has joined the  Lakas–Christian Muslim Democrats party. Familiaran took his oath as member of the Lakas CMD before Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez, president of the party,   at the  Speaker's Office in the House of Representatives Tuesday evening.  Witnessing the event were Majority Leader Manuel Jose "Mannix" Dalipe and Abang Lingkod Party-list Rep. Joseph Stephen  Paduano.Familiaran was a former member of the Nacionalista Party. Familiaran, who is on his last term as vice mayor, said he has three options for 2025. He could run for congressman, councilo...

The House of Representatives concurred with the approved amended Senate version of House Bill 9805 granting a franchise to Negros Electric and Power Corporation (NEPC) on Wednesday, May 22. The House Committee on Legislative Franchises, sponsor of House Bill 9805, and its authors had no objections to the Senate’s amendments.This means the convening of a Bicameral Conference Committee to reconcile conflicting provisions of the bill will no longer be necessary. The bill is expected to go directly to the Office of the President for possible signing into law.      The franchise will allow NEPC to take over the power distribution services of Central Negros Electric Cooperative in Bacolod, Silay, Talisay and Bago cities and the municipalities of...