HEADLINE

By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga  Negros Occidental Provincial Legal Officer Atty. Alberto Nellas, Jr. confirmed yesterday that the office had ordered an additional 60-day preventive suspension against two personnel of the Office of the Provincial Agriculturist (OPA) for grave misconduct. Nellas said the suspended personnel were Engineer Jimbo Garsula, agricultural engineering head under OPA, and …

By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga The Negros Occidental provincial government is encouraging its 31 local government units (LGUs) to celebrate their respective festivals to attract more tourists. This comes after the Department of Tourism in Western Visayas (DOT-6) reported that in the region, only Boracay Island has attained pre-pandemic levels of tourist arrivals so far. …

By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga  The Boracay MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences/conventions, exhibitions/events) Alliance, in cooperation with the Department of Tourism in Western Visayas (DOT-6) and the Aklan’s Malay government unit, launched the High 5 Boracay Clean-up Drive on Friday, November 11, which aims to keep the island’s beaches clean.  The initiative aims to reinforce the …

By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board in Western Visayas (LTFRB-6) said over the weekend that they are expecting more than a thousand modernized public utility jeepneys (PUJs) will be in service in Bacolod City by next year. In a radio interview, LTFRB-6 spokesperson Atty. Salvador Altura said around 1,099 …

  By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga Three people were killed while 37 others were injured after a driver of a public utility jeepney (PUJ) lost control and crashed into a tree in Barangay Malatas in Negros Occidental’s Calatrava town, on Friday afternoon, November 11. Police identified the fatalities as 32-year-old Rutchelle Visitacion, 72-year-old Elma Baynosa, …

By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga  Bacolod City Mayor Alfredo Benitez said the city aspires for a peaceful transition from the traditional to fully modernized public utility jeepneys (PUJs).  The talks between the city government and representatives from the various operators of traditional and modernized PUJs have begun as the city government has agreed to meet …

By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga  The detailed engineering design for the Panay-Guimaras-Negros (PGN) Bridge project is targeted to begin by the first quarter of next year. Department of Public Works and Highways Undersecretary Emil Sadain said the Department of Finance had issued the evidence of authority on October 24, for the engineering services of the …

  By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga Various transport groups representing the operators of the traditional public utility jeepneys (PUJs) in Bacolod City have formally filed a manifesto asking for a two-year provisional authority extension to legally operate in the city. Bacolod City Vice Mayor El Cid Familiaran said the letter was addressed to Mayor Alfredo …

By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga  A water sample taken from a well in Bacolod City’s Barangay Mandalagan tested positive for vibrio cholerae, a cholera-causing bacteria, based on findings by the City Health Office (CHO) yesterday morning. The well, located at Purok Luhod-luhod, was reported to also be actively used by residents living in the area. …

By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga  The Bacolod City Police Office (BCPO) chief is hoping that the current tensions between operators of the traditional and modern public utility jeepneys (PUJs) will be resolved and will no longer widen into an open conflict. BCPO director, Colonel Thomas Joseph Martir said, based on the information they have gathered, …