HEADLINE

  By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga Eight employees of the Negros Occidental provincial government have tested positive for drug use, provincial administrator Atty. Rayfrando Diaz confirmed yesterday. Diaz said seven employees have tested positive for methamphetamine or shabu, while one tested positive for marijuana. Twenty employees have been tagged as “gray,” and they will undergo confirmatory …

By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga Two local transport groups have announced that they will not join the transport strike in Bacolod City. The Sentrong Samahan ng mga Tsuper at Operators (SSTONE) and the Federation of Bacolod City Drivers Association (FEBACDA) will not join the strike, and instead they will prepare transport documents for submission next year. The transport …

By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga Around 3,000 employees of the Negros Occidental provincial government underwent mandatory drug tests yesterday, as part of the efforts for a drug-free workplace in the Provincial Capitol. Provincial administrator Atty. Rayfrando Diaz said the second drug test will be implemented in the next two days, and another is scheduled on Friday, …

By Mae Singuay The United Sugar Producers Federation (Unifed) is calling for “much-needed intervention” from the national government following a decline in the prices of sugar, way below the comfortable profit margin for sugar producers, particularly small farmers. Unifed president Manuel Lamata asked for possible state intervention from President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. and Agriculture Secretary …

By Mae Singuay The Bacolod Alliance of Commuters, Operators and Drivers (BACOD) is mulling holding a transport strike in the city next week. BACOD president Rudy Catedral said that they will be one with the plan of the Samahang Manibela Mananakay at Nagkaisang Terminal ng Transportasyon to conduct a transport strike tentatively on December 10 and 13. Catedral also …

By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga At least 53 passengers of a Bacolod City-bound fastcraft were rescued after the vessel broke down in the vicinity waters of Bredco Port in the city yesterday afternoon. Chief Petty Officer Louie Campaner, Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) Bredco Port substation commander, said the M/V City of General Santos, operated by Montenegro Shipping …

By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga and Mae Singuay The Traffic Management Unit of the Bacolod City Police Office (BCPO-TMU) made an appeal to motorists to avoid driving while under the influence of liquor in time for the holiday season. BCPO-TMU head, Police Major Ramel Sarona said they have observed an increasing number of road accidents in the city …

By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga Changes in weather conditions have caused a spike in the number of cases of influenza-like illnesses in Negros Occidental, the Provincial Health Office (PHO) said yesterday, after recording a 258.93 percent increase for this year. PHO head, Dr. Girlie Pinongan, said they have recorded a total of 2,211 cases from …

By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga Only 66.70 percent of candidates in the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections (BSKE) in Negros Occidental filed their Statement of Contributions and Expenditures (SOCE). Data from the Commission on Elections (Comelec) in Negros Occidental revealed that of the 29,682 candidates in the October polls, only 19,800 were able to file their SOCEs. …

By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga The Negros Occidental provincial government is currently working to expand nucleus farms to further boost the livestock population. Provincial administrator Atty. Rayfrando Diaz made the announcement during the formal turnover of feeder cattle under the provincial government’s cattle fattening program on Friday, December 1. The said program is one of the alternative …