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A total of 1,608 healthcare workers in public and private hospitals in Bacolod City have been initially identified to receive the Comirnaty Pfizer-BioNtech-adapted bivalent vaccines for enhanced protection against COVID-19.Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez said Tuesday, July 11, that he supports the continuing vaccination program as he underscored its importance in the fight against the virus.“I applaud the commitment of the dedicated health care workers who have relentlessly served the community throughout the challenging times brought about by the pandemic,” he added.In Bacolod, the vaccines have been administered every Friday since July 7 to allow the hospital front-liners to have the weekend to rest from adverse reactions.Those who have already availed of the bivalent vacc...

The Bacolod City government is conducting an investigation on the issuance of fake business permits, Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez said Monday, July 10.A preliminary investigation is being conducted to determine if this happened with the consent of persons working for the city government or was done by outsiders who work as fixers, he said.Benitez said he has also received information of the involvement of some people who are no longer part of the city government, which will be part of their investigation.The were some businessmen who were surprised to find out that their business permits were not valid and are now assisted to obtain legitimate ones, he said.Businessmen should double check if their business permits are valid, he said.The mayor, in his state of the city...

Bacolod Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez delivering his state of the city address on July 5.*Ronnie Baldonado photoBacolod Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez said on Monday, July 10, that spoiled food was served during his state of the city address last week, the caterer responsible will be removed from the list of accredited suppliers of the city.The caterer is expected to submit his explanation to the city officials on Tuesday, he said.The city government has already partially paid for the food provided by the caterer, Benitez said.The caterer has denied that the food they served at the SOCA was spoiled.*

City Social Welfare Officer Sally Abelarde explains the release of finanancial assistance to the fire victims at a press conference of Bacolod Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez on Monday.*The Bacolod City government is addressing the need for adequate water supply to put fires out and is preparing the release of P580,000 in assistance to 69 families whose homes were hit by a fire in Purok Magnolia, Barangay 7, Bacolod City, on July 7.Bacolod Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez at a press conference on Monday, July 10, said he has created a Task Force El Niño to attend to the water needs of the city amid an expected dry spell.He also reiterated that the lack of fire hydrants and the existence of 119 red zones, or communities in the city that cannot be reached by firetrucks because of na...

Prospero de Vera III, Commission on Higher Education chairman, and First Lady Liza Araneta Marcos (1st and 3rd from left) in Iloilo City on Monday.*Liza Marcos FB page photoMayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez is seeking national government help for more classrooms and teachers in Bacolod City to meet the growing number of students.Benitez said he discussed the needs of the schools with Prospero de Vera III, Commission on Higher Education chairman, who along with First Lady Liza Araneta Marcos attended the SUC (state universities and colleges) Fair 2023 in Iloilo City on Monday, July 10.“The applicants for enrollment are much much higher than the capacity of our educational institutions so we need to build more classrooms and train more teachers, which chairman de Vera acknowledged,”...

A Bacolod MassKara appears at the bottom of the letter V in the DOT campaign logo, Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez said.*Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson said on Monday, July 10, he thinks Negros Occidental can suggest the inclusion of its sites in the Department of Tourism’s “Love the Philippines" video.“Yes I think we can do that because they lack materials,” he said, referring to the initial DOT video that became controversial for its inclusion of stock videos from other countries.Lacson said Negros Occidental can suggest its tourism areas that are part of the itinerary of foreign and local tourists.Bacolod Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez said he will also seek the inclusion of MassKara Festival in the “Love the Philippines” video.Meanwhile, Lacson clarified that the renovatio...

There is nothing wrong with public officials endorsing the joint venture agreement (JVA) between Central Negros Electric Cooperative and Primelectric Holdings Inc., Negros Occidental Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson said Monday, July 10.He said public officials have the right to ensure whom they feel will be the better management.“Don’t look at us only as public officials we are also consumers and some of us are paying a considerable amount on a monthly basis because of businesses,” Lacson said.“Any public official who is a consumer has the right to express sentiments,” he added.The National Electrification Administration has temporarily put the plebiscite on the JVA on hold pending the cleansing of the CENECO consumer-members’ voters list.The plebiscite is being held to de...

More African swine fever (ASF) positive cases have been detected in Kabankalan City and Hinigaran, Negros Occidental, the Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) reported.The BAI in a report dated July 1, which was released Monday, July 10, said there were two specimens that tested positive for ASF in Barangay Linao, one in Barangay Binicuil and 13 in Barangay 6 in Kabankalan City.Barangays Camba-og and Gargato in Hinigaran also had one pig each that tested positive for ASF.The pig deaths in Negros Occidental from hog cholera, ASF and other diseases were 16,361 with losses of P186,633,250 on Sunday, July 9, the Provincial Veterinary Office reported.Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson assured that despite the deaths, Negros Occidental still has adequate pork supply.“We’re still okay as far...

Negros Occidental Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson said on Monday, July 10, that he has no problem with the importation of an additional 150,000 MT of sugar as long as domestic millgate prices do not go below P3,000 per lkg.The Sugar Regulatory Administration last week issued Sugar Order No. 7 authorizing the importation of an additional 150,000 metric tons (MT) of sugar to ensure that the country has a buffer stock.Lacson said a lot of planters were happy with the sugar millgate prices that really went up during the first crop year under the Marcos administration.He hopes the Negrenses in the SRA can maintain those millgate prices, Lacson said.Negrense Pablo Luis Azcona is the acting SRA administrator and David Andrew Sanson is the planters’ representative to the sugar board.“...

About 24 deaf and persons with special needs completed a digital literacy training at the Negros Occidental Language and Information and Technology Center in Bacolod City on Friday, July 7.This is a pioneer training of NOLITC in partnership with the Bacolod Integrated Deaf Association (BIDA) where they trained 19 deaf and five persons with special needs.NOLITC Administrator Ma. Cristina Orbecido said on Monday (July 10) that the digital literacy training is part of the digital inclusion advocacy of the center.“Beyond the conventional work offered to the deaf like massage, and cooking, among others, NOLITC wanted to introduce nontraditional skills such as technology-driven work and online or virtual jobs”, she said.She also said that a lot of companies are campaigning for in...