Negros Occidental Provincial Social Welfare and Development Officer (PSWDO) Merle Garcia and Provincial Health Officer Ernell Tumimbang are set to retire this year.
Garcia is retiring on February 24 and Tumimbang in June, Provincial Administrator Rayfrando Diaz said on Tuesday, February 21.
A new permanent social welfare officer will have to be found because it is a Seal of Good Local Governance requirement, he said.
Diaz also said a PHO transition team or OIC will start work in April.
There are a lot of concerns that the PHO needs to address, including nutrition and sanitation, he said.
He said the PHO report that there were 320 hand, foot and mouth disease cases in Negros Occidental or a 6,300 percent increase this year was premature as they were not confirmed by tests conducted by the Research Institute of Tropical Medicine.*