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By CESAR JOLITO III Five job order employees of the Negros Occidental provincial government tested positive for illegal drug use, Provincial Administrator Rayfrando Diaz III said yesterday. Diaz said the five workers will not have their contracts renewed on July 1, 2025, in accordance with Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson’s policy. The regular drug testing was …

The scheduled sale of rice at the highly anticipated price of P20 per kilo in Negros Occidental’s Pulupandan town did not push through last weekend. Governor Eugenio Jose Bong Lacson announced that the Pulupandan municipal government was not yet ready to implement the program. The locality requested to reset the rollout to a later date. …

Seventy-five candidates who ran for various positions in the 2025 midterm elections in Negros Occidental failed to file their Statements of Contributions and Expenditures (SOCE), according to the Commission on Elections (Comelec). Out of 778 candidates, 703 successfully submitted their SOCEs before the June 11 deadline. The highest number of SOCE filers came from Kabankalan …

By MAE SINGUAY A 52-year-old man died after he was trapped inside his burning house at Barangay Caduha-an in Negros Occidental’s Cadiz City early Tuesday morning, June 17. The victim was identified as Allan Alibutdon, a resident of Hacienda Navidad. He died from suffocation, secondary to smoke inhalation and full-body burns, during the blaze, Fire …

BACOLOD CITY — Negros Power continues to bring welcome relief to its consumers as it announces a P0.55 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) reduction in electricity rates for June 2025 — a move that directly benefits thousands of households and businesses across its franchise area. For this month’s billing cycle, residential consumers will pay only P11.14 per kWh, …

A help desk has been established at the Negros Occidental Provincial Capitol to provide assistance to families of Negrense overseas Filipino workers (OFW) currently in Israel, Iran and neighboring countries amid the escalating conflict between the two nations. This was announced by Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson yesterday as tensions and hostilities continue to intensify in …

Annual rate of price increases in Bacolod City and in Negros Occidental province both accelerated to 2.4 percent in May, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported yesterday. PSA data show that the inflation rate in Bacolod City in the previous month stood at 2.2 percent, while it was 2.1 percent for Negros Occidental. However, last …

The Negros Occidental Provincial Health Office (PHO) is closely monitoring a significant increase in dengue cases in the province, anticipating a further rise due to the ongoing rainy season. PHO head Dr. Girlie Pinongan reported that the number of dengue infections has surged sharply, especially with the resumption of classes in schools amid the wet weather …

Over 2,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Canlaon City, Negros Oriental have been transferred to modular tents to allow the schools that were used as evacuation centers to open yesterday. Edna Lhou Masicampo, Canlaon City Public Information Officer, told the Philippine News Agency that the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) donated the tents to accommodate …

The Department of Education (DepEd) Schools-Division of Negros Occidental started classes in all its 576 schools, with an estimated 325,000 learners, without major concerns yesterday. DepEd-Negros Occidental supervises schools in the province’s 19 municipalities and the component city of Talisay. In a statement, Schools Division Superintendent Anthony Liobet said they thoroughly implemented preparations for the …