By Mae Singuay

Bacolod City is eyeing financial assistance for backyard hog raisers affected by suspected African swine fever (ASF).

According to City Legal Office’s (CLO) Romeo Carlos Ting Jr., Task Force ASF member, he was informed by Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez, who was on a trip abroad, that the city government was willing to extend financial aid.

However, the CLO was not sure how much and how it would be distributed, either per ASF-infected pigs or per household.

Earlier, Tangub Punong Barangay Noli Villarosa declared the village will extend P3,000 to raisers per pig after the City Veterinary Office (CVO) culled 23 pigs from two backyard hog owners.

The task force recommended culling their pigs and being buried on-site after showing symptoms of ASF, Villarosa said.

Last week, Benitez declared there were two pigs that tested positive for ASF in Barangay Taculing.

On Monday, May 29, another two suspected ASF cases were recorded in Barangay Tangub after laboratory tests were conducted by the Department of Agriculture in Western Visayas (DA-6).

Meanwhile, acting mayor El Cid Familiaran disclosed that today, the DA-6 and Victorias Veterinary Office will conduct an orientation for several representatives from 61 city barangays to become paraveterinarians.

According to Familiaran, the trainees will be in-charge of monitoring and gathering data from their respective barangays in relation to ASF.

They will be trained regarding biosecurity measures as a way to contain hog diseases like ASF./MS, WDJ