By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga
Negros Oriental Governor Manuel “Chaco” Sagarbarria said the recent passage of the Negros Island Region (NIR) bill is a “great advantage” for both Negros provinces.
Sagarbarria made the comments during the sidelines of the Regional Development Council in Central Visayas meeting held in Cebu City on Thursday, March 14.
According to Sagarbarria, it would be better if the government agencies’ regional offices were located in Negros.
He also added that NIR’s reestablishment will not affect Negros Oriental’s relationship with Central Visayas.
The Senate passed the NIR bill on the third and final reading on Wednesday, March 13, creating a new region consisting of Negros Occidental, Negros Oriental and Siquijor.
The bill seeks to improve the delivery of basic government services on Negros Island, through the establishment of regional government offices, and to promote decentralization to strengthen local autonomy.
Under the bill, regional offices related to agriculture, peace and order, security, and governance clusters will be established in Negros Occidental, while agencies related to human development, infrastructure and industry, and labor clusters will be assigned to Negros Oriental.
A technical working group will formulate a roadmap for the institutional arrangements of the NIR, arrange the organizational development requirements for development planning and investment programming, and map out the provision of public services in the proposed region.
Negros Occidental currently belongs to Western Visayas, while Negros Oriental and Siquijor are under Central Visayas.
The NIR was initially established in 2015, through Executive Order (EO) 183 issued by former President Benigno Aquino III, but it was abolished by then President Rodrigo Duterte through EO 38 in 2017.
It can also be recalled that Sagarbarria’s predecessor, the late Negros Oriental Governor Roel Degamo, opposed the NIR bill, citing “cultural barrier” as Negros Oriental uses the Cebuano or Bisaya language, while Negros Occidental uses the Hiligaynon language.
Degamo also voiced the “unequal voting” within the Regional Development Council meetings if the NIR were ever established.
However, Degamo was not fully against the NIR’s reestablishment, as he proposed the creation of a third province on Negros Island before agreeing to the NIR, a proposal which raised eyebrows and even gathered ire from some Negrense politicians and groups who stated that his proposal would take too long to materialize.
Degamo was assassinated on March 4 of last year at his residence in Pamplona town, and was subsequently succeeded by Carlo Jorge Joan Reyes, who also passed away of a natural cause a few months later, and was replaced by Sagarbarria./DGB, WDJ