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Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson is urging more investments in renewable energy plants in Negros Occidental to ensure   power security for the province. The governor reiterated the call on Friday, April 19, as the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines continued to issue yellow and red alerts versus possible load dropping and power interruptions. NGCP said on Friday that 18 power plants in the Visayas are on forced outage, while 10 others are running on derated capacities, for a total of 757.7MW unavailable to the grid. Lacson said that shortage of power during the summer is normal because there are more people using air conditioning on top of the forced outages. “This is a warning that we cannot depend on our power generators now, we need more o...

A sugar leader is appealing to the Negros Occidental provincial government to declare a state of calamity so it can buy an airplane for cloud seeding  to induce rain amid the worsening drought brought on by the El Niño phenomenon. Manuel Lamata,  United Sugar Producers Federation (UNIFED) president, issued the appeal to the provincial government officials led by Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson and   Vice Gov. Jeffrey Ferrer on Friday, April 19. “Our  sugar industry needs rain now. This will be the same problem next year so the provincial government  should be ready to help the Island of Negros,” he said. “We should not wait for Manila to help us, we should help ourselves, he said.The sugar industry losses have reached  million...

Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson* The Negros Occidental provincial government does not need to declare a state of calamity since it still has available funds to assist farmers affected by the drought, Gov.  Eugenio Jose Lacson said on Friday, April 19. The provincial government still has P8 to P10 million available for assistance to farmers, he said. Drought damage to rice and corn crops in 25 towns and cities of Negros Occidental was P184,764,120 affecting 4,739 farmers, the Office of the Provincial Agriculturist reported on Thursday.When you declare a state of calamity there are certain funds that can be used, the governor said. That is why Kabankalan City and San Enrique declared states of calamity so they can assist their affected   consti...

Bacolod Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez and First Lady Liza Araneta Marcos during the  2022 MassKara Festival.*Ronnie Baldonado photoBacolod Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez said on Friday, April 19, that adhering to the principle of delicadeza, it may be wise for Vice President Sara Duterte  to consider stepping down as secretary  of education “to preserve the integrity and unity of the administration”. “In light of recent events, it is crucial for all Cabinet members to uphold the utmost support and unity. Secretary Sara's presence at events where the leadership is criticized has raised concerns,” Benitez, who is a close ally of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., said.Benitez was reacting  to the statement of  First Lady Liza Araneta Marcos that she fe...

The EB Magalona pavilion is the top earner.* The Panaad sa Negros Festival sales hit P8,850,787.50 in the first four days of the festivities at the Panaad Park and Stadium in Bacolod City from Monday to Thursday, April 15 to 18. Total running sales of LGU Pavilions is P5,320,976.80, San Miguel and Garden Show - P2,008,385.20, Food Alley - P805,218.50, Provincial Veterinary Office -  P470,664, Trade Fair MUAD  - P142,422, and OPA - P103,121, records from the festival secretariat on  Friday showed. On Wednesday sales was at P2,186,397.80, while on Thursday it was P2,843,025.50 with  the Technical Livelihood Development Center added as one of the kiosks, which had total sales of about P635,503. Negros Occidental Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson ...

Jean Clifford Rabinowitz on his arrest.*BCPO photo An American citizen tagged as the “Vandal Bandit of Bacolod City” was arrested by the police for vandalism and malicious mischief at Burgos Street, Brgy. Villamonte, Bacolod City, on Friday, April 19. Arrested was Jean Clifford Rabinowitz, 30, who is temporarily residing at Rosario Heights in Brgy. Taculing, Bacolod. He   was caught in the act vandalizing a walk along Burgos Street at about 4:02 p.m., the police said. Rabinowitz is a permanent resident of Cold Springs Drive, Forest Hill, California, records showed. Recovered from him were 13 canisters of spray paint. He tried to escape and resisted arrest, the police said. He was caught by the Task Force Vandalism of the Bacolod City Police...

A rice field has dried up in the mountain village of Mandu-ao in Bayawan City, Negros Oriental, due to the drought.*photo courtesy of Jevy BiananCrop damage and other agricultural production losses in Negros Oriental due to El Niño have reached more than P229 million. A report from the Department of Agriculture-Provincial Agriculture Technology Coordinating Office (DA-PATCO) showed that as of Thursday,  April 18, production loss in value was pegged at P229.881 million. This includes rice, corn, high-value crops such as fruits and vegetables, fisheries, livestock and agricultural infrastructures from 13 towns and cities. The affected areas are Mabinay, Bayawan City, Zamboanguita, Vallehermoso, Bais City, Dumaguete City, La Libertad, Tanjay, Manjuyod, Bind...

Divers conduct an assessment in the two marine protected areas at the Sipaway Island in San Carlos City, Negros Occidental, on  Thursday, April 18.*San Carlos LGU photo San Carlos City  in Negros Occidental has been found to have high fish biomass and coral cover, based on the assessment of the University of the Philippines Marine Science Institute-Marine Environment and Resources Foundation (UPMSI-MERF) in partnership with RARE Philippines' Fish Forever program. In a report on Friday,  April 19, the city government said the underwater marine assessment was conducted in the two marine protected areas (MPAs) near Sipaway Island on April 18. Fish biomass refers to the total number and size of fish in a given area while coral cover is the percentage of the reef...

NOCCII president Edward Du (left) speaks at a NIR public hearing  in Silliman University in  Dumaguete City in 2015* The Negros Oriental Chamber of Commerce and Industry Inc. in a letter to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.  on Thursday, April 18, expressed its full support for the Negros Island Region (NIR) following the opposition earlier aired by the Diocese of Dumaguete. The letter signed by NOCCII president Edward C. Du called on Marcos    to deny and ignore in toto the March 25 request of the Diocese of Dumaguete for him to veto the NIR bill. Du said NOCCII was issuing the call   with due respect to the anti-NIR stand of the Diocese of Dumaguete notwithstanding the doctrine of separation of Church and State. He ...

Drought damage to rice and corn crops in 25 towns and cities of Negros Occidental is now P184,764,120, with Cauayan town accounting for more than one-third of the total amount.Cauayan town in southern Negros Occidental sustained crop damage of P67.4 million, an Office of the Provincial Agriculturist report submitted to Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson on Thursday, April 18, showed.The OPA report said the total damage to rice was P180,026,310 and to corn - P4,737, 809 affecting 4,739 farmers in 178 barangays.The following is the drought damage to rice crops per district:FIRST DISTRICT: San Carlos City – P2,383,723 and Don Salvador Benedicto - P701,525;SECOND DISTRICT: Sagay City - P1,324,425;THIRD DISTRICT: Murcia - P688,638; Talisay City - P1,115,504, EB Magalona - P2,572,4...