Tag: Negros Island

Oct12026 by Mark L. GarciaNo Comments

Bago becomes first Negros Island LGU with 2 licensed primary care facilities

Bago City has become the first local government unit in the Negros Island Region to operate two licensed primary care facilities after the Barangay Ma-ao Health Station passed its assessment on Wednesday, Sept. 30.The city government said the Ma-ao facility was granted a license to operate as a Primary Care Facility following an assessment conducted by the Regulation, Licensing and Enforcement Division of the Department of Health-Negros Island Region.The RLED team was led by Dr. Anna Andrea Libo-on, while the Barangay Ma-ao Health Station team was headed by Dr. Elijah Blaise Bimbao under the supervision of City Health Officer Dr. Ferdinand Ramon Mayoga.Bago City Mayor Marina Javellana said Brgy. Ma-ao is also the first barangay in the Negros Island Region to have a licensed...

Sep302026 by Mark L. GarciaNo Comments

P100M dialysis center opens at Negros Oriental Provincial Hospital

Community, Negros Oriental, Top Stories

A P100-million hemodialysis center offering free dialysis services to patients has opened at the Negros Oriental Provincial Hospital (NOPH) in Dumaguete City.Gov. Manuel Sagarbarria led the inauguration and blessing of the NOPH Dialysis Center on Tuesday, Sept. 29, before the facility began receiving its first patients.The center currently has 12 dialysis machines, with the number expected to increase to 25 by October.Another 25 machines are planned for the second floor of the facility next year, which would bring its total capacity to 50 dialysis machines.Sagarbarria said the dialysis center was one of his administration’s flagship projects and was intended to make renal care more accessible to Negros Oriental residents.The provincial government said patients will ...

Sep302026 by Mark L. GarciaNo Comments

Negros Oriental returns to 4-day workweek amid rising fuel, energy costs

Business, Community, Negros Oriental, Top Stories

The Negros Oriental provincial government has reimplemented a four-day compressed workweek as a temporary energy conservation and cost-saving measure amid renewed increases in fuel prices and continuing energy cost volatility.Gov. Manuel “Chaco” Sagarbarria issued Executive Order No. 58, Series of 2026, which took effect Monday, Sept. 28.Under the arrangement, covered provincial government employees will report onsite from Monday to Thursday, 8 a.m. to 7 p.m., with a one-hour lunch break from noon to 1 p.m.Employees will work 10 hours a day to complete the required 40-hour workweek, while Friday will generally be designated as a non-working day subject to service requirements.Job order and contract of service personnel will follow the same compressed schedule without re...

Sep302026 by Mark L. GarciaNo Comments

Tricycle driver shot dead in Murcia

Police, Top Stories

A 53-year-old tricycle driver was shot dead by an unidentified assailant in Brgy. Salvacion, Murcia, Negros Occidental, on Tuesday morning, Sept. 29.Police identified the victim as alias “Tampol”, a resident of Hacienda Beri in Brgy. Salvacion.The shooting occurred at around 6:05 a.m. in Purok Señora while the victim was driving his tricycle.Initial police investigation showed that the victim stopped his tricycle and was talking with bystanders when an unidentified man approached him.The assailant allegedly drew a firearm of unknown caliber and shot the victim several times, hitting him in the head and other parts of his body.The gunman fled in an unknown direction after the shooting.The victim was rushed to the Murcia Health Unit, where he was declared dead on arri...

Sep302026 by Mark L. GarciaNo Comments

CAFGU member killed, 2 soldiers wounded in Escalante clash

Police, Top Stories

A member of the Citizen Armed Force Geographical Unit (CAFGU) was killed and two soldiers were wounded in an armed encounter in Brgy. Malasibog, Escalante City, Negros Occidental, on Tuesday afternoon, Sept. 29.The Army’s 3rd Infantry Division (3ID) said personnel of the 79th Infantry Battalion (79IB), including members of its Mobile Community Support and Sustainment Program team, were conducting a security patrol in Sitio Bautista when they encountered an armed group.The firefight lasted for about 10 minutes, the Army said.One CAFGU Active Auxiliary member was killed, while two soldiers were wounded and brought to a hospital.The Army said the wounded soldiers were in stable condition.The 3ID attributed the attack to remnants of the communist armed movement, althoug...

Sep292026 by Digicast NegrosNo Comments

Bacolod public plaza to host MassKara competitions, community events Oct. 9 to 16

Community, Top Stories

Bacolod City’s public plaza will host a series of competitions and community activities from Oct. 9 to 16 as part of the MassKara Festival 2026, featuring local dancers, student performers, market vendors and representatives of various sectors.The Bacolod Gugma Foundation announced on Tuesday, Sept. 29, that the activities will be held under the festival theme “Share The Smile. Celebrate Gugma.”Situation at Bacolod City Public Plaza days before the soft opening of 47th MassKara Festival.The plaza events will begin on Oct. 9 with the Choreographers Face Off, featuring homegrown dance talents representing different barangays in Bacolod.Elementary and high school students will compete in the Inter-School Drum and Lyre Corps Competition on Oct. 10, with nine elementary schools...

Sep292026 by Mark L. GarciaNo Comments

P10.2M in suspected smuggled cigarettes seized in Himamaylan raid

Police, Top Stories

Authorities seized P10.2 million worth of suspected smuggled cigarettes and arrested a 22-year-old man during an operation in Himamaylan City, Negros Occidental, early Monday, Sept. 28.The Police Regional Office-Negros Island Region (PRO-NIR) identified the arrested suspect as alias Omar, while aliases Jun and Jake remain at large.Police said all three suspects are from Jolo, Sulu.The joint operation was conducted at around 2:55 a.m. in Sitio Batang, Brgy. Talaban, where authorities intercepted cigarettes reportedly being prepared for transport.Recovered during the operation were 63 master cases and 74 boxes of D&B cigarettes, as well as 25 master cases of YS Menthol and 102 boxes of YS Red cigarettes.The 176 boxes contained 25 reams each, according to PRO-NIR. ...

Sep282026 by Mark L. GarciaNo Comments

Love triangle eyed in La Libertad barangay captain’s killing, suspect arrested in Bacolod

Negros Oriental, Police, Top Stories

Police are investigating an alleged love triangle as the possible motive in the killing of a barangay captain in La Libertad, Negros Oriental, following the arrest of the suspect in Bacolod City on Saturday, Sept. 26.Negros Oriental Police Provincial Office (NORPPO) Acting Director Col. Jonathan Abella said investigators are looking into a personal grudge involving the victim, Brgy. Kansumandig Captain Dennis Jimpayan, 40, and the suspect, Gilbert Bellena, 32.Abella said initial information indicated that the two men may have been involved with the same woman, who was reportedly Jimpayan’s live-in partner.He said investigators have obtained information from the woman, who remained at the investigation office for further questioning.Abella said police have found no indicatio...

Sep272026 by Mark L. GarciaNo Comments

Negros Oriental, Siquijor workers to get P42 daily wage hike starting Oct. 14

Business, Community, Negros Oriental, Top Stories

Minimum wage earners in Negros Oriental and Siquijor will receive a P42 daily wage increase starting Oct. 14, 2026, under a wage adjustment approved for private sector workers covered by the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board (RTWPB) VII.Labor Secretary Francis Tolentino announced the increase on Saturday, Sept. 26, saying it is equivalent to an additional P1,092 a month.The wage adjustment also covers Cebu and Bohol, with the Department of Labor and Employment estimating that 337,476 workers across the four provinces will benefit.Although Negros Oriental and Siquijor are part of the Negros Island Region (NIR), they remain covered by RTWPB VII for minimum wage-setting purposes, while Negros Occidental remains under RTWPB VI in Western Visayas.The wage adjustme...

Sep232026 by Mark L. GarciaNo Comments

Sugar groups urge Coca-Cola to prioritize local sugar amid finished product imports

Business, Top Stories

Sugar producers and workers on Wednesday, Sept. 23, called on Coca-Cola's Philippine bottler to prioritize locally produced sugar following reports that it has been importing finished Coca-Cola products from Indonesia.In a joint statement on Sept. 23, the Sugar Council, National Congress of Unions in the Sugar Industry of the Philippines, and Democratic Association of Labor Organizations said the importation could reduce demand for Philippine sugar and affect farmers, millers and sugar workers.The Sugar Council is composed of the Confederation of Sugar Producers Associations, National Federation of Sugarcane Planters and Panay Federation of Sugarcane Farmers.The groups issued the appeal after The Philippine Star reported on Sept. 17 that Coca-Cola Europacific Aboitiz Philippine...