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Eight individuals were arrested and P235,416 worth of suspected shabu was seized in six buy-bust operations from July 23 to 29, the Negros Occidental Police Provincial Office (NOCPPO) reported on Wednesday, August 2.Recovered were 34.62 grams of shabu, it said.The police also arrested 27 suspects in six anti-illegal gambling operations last week and seized P3,450 in bet money, the NOCPPO said.NOCPPO said one most wanted person and 54 other wanted suspects were also arrested during 51 operations provincewide.*

Negrenses who wish to run for barangay and Sanguniang Kabataan (SK) posts in October can now download Certificates of Candidacy forms at the Commission on Elections website.This was announced by Negros Occidental Provincial Elections Supervisor Ian Lee Ananoria on Wednesday, August 2, as preparations for the October 30 Barangay and SK elections are underway.The COC forms from the Punong Barangay, Sangguniang Barangay members, SK chairperson, and SK council members are available for downloading .But Ananoria said that the submission of the filled out forms should still be done in person.The Bacolod COMELEC Office will also open a booth in a mall to cater to persons who will file their COCs from the 61 barangays of the city, he said.Other cities and towns have also signif...

Bacolod and Tanduay officials announced the holding of the rum festival at a press conference on Wednesday*Celebrities are joining the nine-day Tanduay Bacolod Rum Festival 2023 that will be held at the Bacolod City Government Center (BCGC) Complex August 12-20.Expected at the festival are Derek Ramsay, Kylie Verzosa and singer-songwriter Ely Buendia.The nationwide flairtending and mixology competition grand finals will also be held for the first time during the Bacolod festival.The winner will win P50,000 and will represent the country in a similar competition in Singapore in November.Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez noted that Bacolod is the home of Tanduay, the world’s No. 1 rum that has a huge impact in terms of awareness of the city.“We would like to enhance the ...

A private armed group (PAG) responsible for the series of killings in Negros Oriental has been neutralized following the death of a key member, a police official said Tuesday, August 1.In a press briefing, Col. Ronan Claravall, acting police provincial director, said the death of alleged hired gun Alex Mayagma on Monday will lead to the eventual downfall of the group.“Mayagma is a PAG member operating in Negros Oriental. There are still members, but they are already crippled due to previous arrests as a result of intensified operations,” Claravall told reporters in a briefing held at the Negros Oriental Police Provincial Office (NOPPO) headquarters in Sibulan town.Mayagma, tagged as the topmost wanted person in the Central Visayas region, was shot dead in Barangay Malabugas, Ba...

Bacolod Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez has ordered an impartial investigation into a commotion that took place at Purok Lampirong, Brgy 2, Bacolod City, on Friday while demolition work was underway.An impartial investigation will be conducted by the City Legal Office to determine what really happened and we will act accordingly, Benitez said at a press conference on Tuesday, August 1.He stressed the need for government employees to exercise maximum tolerance, which means not using force.The clearing of illegal structures along the waterway at Lampirong was required by the Department of Public Works and Highways as part of its flood control measures, he said.He said once the Yuhum Village housing units are up by October informal settlers could be relocated there, he said....

The 762 hogs raisers of San Enrique town whose pigs died from various diseases will be the first recipients of financial assistance from the Negros Occidental provincial government.Chiqui Gonzales, Provincial Social Welfare and Development Officer, said on Tuesday, August 1, that P4.5 million has been initially allocated under the first tranche of the Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situation.It will cover 2,260 hog raisers in Negros Occidental who will receive P2,000 each, she said, but did not give a specific date for the release of the assistance.On July 30 the pig deaths in Negros Occidental were 17,744 with total losses of P198.7 million, the Provincial Animal Biosecurity Incident Management Team reported.Total hog raisers affected were 4,244, it added.*

Councilor Richard Jaojoco posted this on his FB page*The Toboso Sangguniang Bayan passed a resolution authored by Councilor Richard Jaojoco declaring drag queen Amadeus Fernando Pagente alias Pura Luka Vega persona non grata during its regular session on Tuesday, August 1.Church groups have slammed her viral drag performance of “Ama Namin” (Our Father). In a video posted on Twitter she is seen wearing a Black Nazarene-drag costume while dancing to a remix version of Ama Namin inside a bar.Jaojoco said as a Catholic he feels that what Pura Luka Vega did was wrong and disrespects God.He authored the resolution stating that she is not welcome in Toboso as a reminder that what was done was wrong, Jaojoco said.*

Bacolod Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez said on Tuesday, August 1, that he is looking for ways to increase enrollment at the Bacolod City College.The mayor said at a BCC Board of Trustees meeting on Monday it was disclosed that out of 5,250 student applicants at the school only 1,310 were accepted for the coming school year.Benitez said he was told that the rest did not meet the 75 percent passing grade.He asked the BCC to review the entrance exam standards and requirements.Benitez said he was informed that the college can accept more students, and that they will review its manpower complement.He has also directed the City Engineer’s Office to fast track repairs and the energizing of new classrooms so they will be ready for the opening of classes.Benitez said he want...

Customs Commissioner Bienvenido Rubio (left) signs the deed of donation and acceptance with Agriculture Senior Undersecretary Domingo Panganiban (right) for 4,000 metric tons of Thailand white sugar on Tuesday.*BOC photoThe Bureau of Customs (BOC) on Tuesday, August 1, donated 4,000 metric tons of seized Thailand white sugar to the Department of Agriculture (DA) to benefit local consumers.BOC Commissioner Bienvenido Rubio said “We firmly believe that, through DA, this donation will reach various local communities and enable our fellow Filipinos to conveniently access sugar".Rubio made the remark following the signing of the deed of donation and acceptance alongside DA Senior Undersecretary Domingo Panganiban.The donation is comprised of 80,000 bags of Thailand white sugar w...

Bacolod Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez is creating a task force to look into businesses with fake or no permits that have caused the city government millions of pesos in lost revenues.The establishments in Bacolod without valid permits are about 15 percent and some of them are big businesses, he said.The task force will visit city business establishment to check on the validity of their permits, he said,Meanwhile, the mayor said DLC Junk Shop at Mabini Street in Brgy 25, that was closed down by the city government on July 6 will be allowed to resume operations if it pays the necessary fines.Benitez issued a notice of revocation of business permit and closure of the DLC Junk Shop for violation of the conditions of the business permit issued by the Bacolod City...