The Negros Island Region (NIR) is now operational with the signing of its implementing rules and regulations (IRR), Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson said.
Lacson officially signed his conformity to the IRR at the Capitol in Bacolod City on Wednesday, Oct. 2.
“With this signing of the IRR we can safely say that the Negros Island Region is now operational,” he said.
In fact the Department of the Interior and Local Government has already set up its regional office in Bacolod with Teodora Sumagaysay as the interim assistant regional director, Lacson said.
“That in a way is telling us that it’s moving already, the many years of waiting is bearing fruit this time,” he said.
The IRR has been signed by secretaries Arsenio Balisacan
of the National Economic and Development Authority, Amenah
Pangandaman of the Department of Budget and Management, and Benjamin Abalos Jr. of the Department of the Interior and Local Government.
It is also being signed by the representatives and governors of Negros Occidental, Negros Oriental and Siquijor, and the mayor of Bacolod City.
Negros Oriental Gov. Manuel “Chaco” Sagarbarria signed the IRR in Dumaguete City on Tuesday, Oct. 1.
“The establishment of the Negros Island Region embodies not just an administrative change, but a vision for a more cohesive and strategic approach to regional issues, development, and community empowerment that could potentially set a precedent for other regions in the Philippines,” a Negros Oriental statement said.
“Many have already signed, I’m one of the last ones to affix my signature,” Lacson said.
“Now that the IRR is there we can expect the NIR to be functional,” he said.
All regional or appropriate level offices shall be established within 90 days after the approval of the IRR with the necessary personnel complement by the end of December 2026, the signed document states.
In the interim, the existing regional or appropriate level offices in Regions VI and VII shall provide assistance in facilitating the initial operations of the NIR.
The NIR-TWG shall cease to exist upon the acceptance of the NIR roadmap by the Office of the President which shall be submitted on or before Jan. 30, 2025.
The IRR states that the regional offices assigned to Negros Occidental are the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Department of Agrarian Reform, Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development, Department of Justice, DILG, Philippine National Police;
Department of National Defense, Department of Budget and Management, Department of Finance, National Economic and Development Authority, Department of Foreign Affairs, Commission on Audit and the Commission on Elections.
The regional offices to be located in Negros Oriental are the Department of Education, Department of Social Welfare and Development, Department of Health, Technical Education and Skills Development Authority, Commission on Higher Education, Civil Service Commission, Philippine Statistics Authority;
Department of Labor and Employment, Department of Public Works and Highways, Department of Transportation, Department of Information and Communications Technology, Department of Energy, Department of Trade and Industry, Department of Tourism, Department of Science and Technology and Department of Finance – Securities and Exchange.
National government agencies (NGAs), including Constitutional Commissions and instrumentalities, not mentioned are required by law to maintain regional presence, the IRR said.
NGAs, including Constitutional Commissions, and instrumentalities, may establish satellite or front-line offices in the province of Siquijor, it added.
The Regional Development Council, Regional Peace and Order Council, Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council and all other mandated regional bodies and mechanisms should be organized within six months after the approval of the IRR.*