Sunday, July 10, 2022

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Number of Bacolod City’s traffic enforcers dwindling

Posted: 10 Jul 2022 07:01 AM PDT

MORE enforcers are needed in Bacolod to man the city's worsening traffic situation.Major Junjie Liba, head of Bacolod Traffic Authority Office (BTAO), said Sunday, July 10, 2022, that presently, they only have 272 personnel.Of the number, 211 are traffic enforcers while the rest are deployed at BTAO offices assigned at the engineering, truck ban, traffic education personnel, among others."We have a small number of traffic enforcers compared to the previous administration, but we will ensure the smooth flow of traffic in various areas," Liba said.He said the new administration retained some of the traffic enforcers from the previous administration and they also hired additional ones.However, Liba noted that they still need additional 70 traffic enforcers including the BTAO task force to be deployed in various streets."We aim to have 340 personnel in 2023 so we can address traffic problems in Bacolod," he added.Liba said they are planning to form more task forces, including towing task force to apprehend the erring motorcycle and e-bike drivers, and illegal parking violators.On Saturday, BTAO conducted an orientation or basic training for the newly hired traffic enforcers at the Bacolod City Police Office (BCPO) compound.Liba said BCPO Director Colonel Thomas Joseph Martir also deployed 10 motorcycle policemen for BTAO to supervise the traffic enforcers.Meanwhile, Liba said they will ask the City Government to purchase two towing trucks to tow the vehicles on illegal parking in different areas of Bacolod.These towing trucks will be deployed in the northern or southern portions of Bacolod and will be an augmentation to the existing one, which Liba said is no longer serviceable.He added that BTAO currently has one tow truck but is not in good condition.Liba said they are now preparing their request to be submitted to Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez.

San Carlos, Bago review disaster plans amid Mount Kanlaon activities

Posted: 10 Jul 2022 07:01 AM PDT

THE local governments of the cities of Bago and San Carlos heeded the advice of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) and began reviewing their disaster preparedness plans amidst the increased activity exhibited by the Mount Kanlaon volcano lately.San Carlos City Mayor Renato Gustilo ordered the villages of Quezon and Codcod to make all necessary measures in case the situation worsens.Even though the volcano's activity seemed to have lied-low for the past three days, Gustilo still encouraged the residents in the two barangays to ensure their readiness at the family level.The city's Operations and Warning Division also made a quick visit to the two villages over the weekend.During the meeting, the teams discussed with the concerned barangays the preparation and revisited the evacuation plan presented a few years ago.The two barangays have also laid out their functional transportation, communication capacity, and budget allocation.Also discussed in the meeting were high-risk sitios, identified evacuation sites, pick-up points, evacuation protocols and other immediate concerns.In Bago City, Mary Jane Ortizo head of the city's Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office (DRRMO) said they are also monitoring the volcano's activities and are releasing daily advisories in order to inform the public.The Bago City DRRMO has also attended the pre-disaster risk assessment meeting led by the Negros Occidental Provincial DRRMO last week, which was also attended by Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson.They have also started stocking up on facemasks, food and non-food items.Ortizo also said they are reviewing their contingency plans and have identified the villages of Ilijan and Mailom as the first to be affected in the event of a volcanic eruption.The two barangays are located close to Kanlaon and have a combined population of more than 12,000 people.Ortizo advised the two villages to also review their disaster plans so that they know where to evacuate.Last week, the Municipal Government of La Castellana also made preparations in case Phivolcs escalated the alert level of the volcano.La Castellana has already identified five possible evacuation sites, four of them are public schools while the fifth is located in the town's Barangay Talaptap.The villages of Masulog, Biaknabato, Cabagnaan, and Mansalanao were also identified by the town's Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office (DRRMO) that will be directly impacted in case the volcano's alert level escalates.Phivolcs Director Dr. Renato Solidum advised the local government units surrounding the Kanlaon Volcano to review their disaster preparedness plans after the volcano continued to exhibit increased activity over the past few days.Solidum said they currently don't see a need to increase Kanlaon's Alert Level, however, he emphasized that the local chief executives of every LGU, especially those who are newly elected and have just stepped into office, to revisit their disaster preparedness plans.Kanlaon currently remains under Alert Level 1, and entry inside the four-kilometer danger zone is prohibited.

Troops behind arrest of high-ranking rebel leader commended

Posted: 10 Jul 2022 07:00 AM PDT

MEMBERS of the 79th Infantry (Masaligan) Battalion responsible for the arrest of a high-ranking official of the communist terrorist group (CTG) received military merit medals over the weekend.No less than Major General Benedict Arevalo, commander of the Third Infantry Division, led the awarding at a ceremony held at the Headquarters, Barangay Bato, Sagay City, Negros Occidental.The Masaligan Troopers were recognized following a successful encounter against seven CTG members in Sitio Banwa Minatay, Barangay Marcelo, Calatrava on July 6, 2022.The encounter resulted in the arrest of Isabelle Necesario, alias "Maolin/Nads/Diane/Ide," who is the deputy secretary of the dismantled Northern Negros Front.Following the encounter, various war materials and subversive documents of high intelligence value were recovered from the site."As your Commander, giving awards is my obligation and duty (because) I want to ensure that my troops will always be in the highest state of morale by giving them medals and due recognition for what they've worked hard for," Arevalo said.

‘Drug personality’ shot dead in Bacolod

Posted: 10 Jul 2022 07:00 AM PDT

AN ALLEGED drug personality was shot to death by an unidentified person on board a motorcycle in Barangay Mandalagan, Bacolod City past 9 p.m. Saturday, July 9, 2022.Captain Armilyn Vargas, commander of Police Station 3, identified the victim as Jovanie Gonzalez, 46, the barangay's Purok Bulak.Vargas said Gonzalez sustained a gunshot wound to his head and died on the spot.She said they recovered an empty shell of an unidentified caliber of firearm from the scene of the crime believed to have been triggered by an illegal drug transaction.Vargas said the victim was a drug peddler and user, adding that they are now coordinating with various business establishments near the area to check their surveillance camera to identify the gunman.Police records show that this is now the third shooting incident that happened in Bacolod City from July 1 to 9, 2022.In San Carlos City, Negros Occidental, a jobless man was seriously injured after his neighbor shot him around 9:30 a.m. Sunday, July 10.Lieutenant Ruby Aurita, deputy chief of San Carlos City police, said victim Roberto Agbay, 41, of the city's Barangay Rizal sustained a gunshot wound on the stomach and will undergo an operation.Initial investigation showed that Agbay was at the Eco-Tourism highway in the barangay when the suspect Jovanie Alora, alias "Banie", 40, approached him.Aurita said Alora was asking Agbay about the speaker he pawned to the latter for P1,000 but a misunderstanding occurred between the two causing the latter to punch the suspect.In retaliation, Alora drew his .38 caliber revolver and shot Agbay, who is now confined at the San Carlos City Hospital. (with reports from APN)

3 suspects fall in drug bust; P500,000 ‘shabu’ seized

Posted: 10 Jul 2022 06:58 AM PDT

THREE illegal drug suspects, to whom the authorities recovered more than half a million worth of suspected shabu, were arrested in a buy-bust operation in Barangay Punta Taytay, south of the highly urbanized city of Bacolod past 2 a.m. Sunday, July 10, 2022.Following weeks of surveillance, the police finally arrested Cyril Gepielago, 49; Julius Londres, 42; Pearly Mae Panes, 30, all residents of the barangay's Purok Kapawa.A report from the Bacolod City Police Office showed that the three were arrested after one of them transacted with a poseur buyer.Some 20 sachets of the banned substance valued at P523,600 and weighing 77 grams, the P1,000 in mark money and other personal belongings and cash were recovered from the suspect when they were arrested, the police said.Gepielago and Londres were identified by the police as high-value individualsThe suspects were detained at the custodial facility of Police Station 9 while charges for violation of Republic Act 9165 or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002 will be filed against them.

Police Station 1 conducts clearing operation in downtown area

Posted: 10 Jul 2022 06:58 AM PDT

MAJOR Ramel Sarona, commander of Police Station 1, said Sunday, July 10, 2022, that they will continue the clearing operation along the downtown area this week.Sarona said they started the clearing operation along Central Public Market on July 7, and on Saturday, several stalls were also removed in Luzuriaga and Gatuslao Streets."We will conduct the clearing operation every day to ensure that our roads will be passable to our motorists," he added.Sarona said several vendors were already occupying the roads and it caused traffic congestion, especially during peak hours.However, the police official said they are waiting for guidelines from the City Legal Office to determine the legal remedy against the erring vendors."For now, they were only given a warning and policemen were assigned at the downtown area to ensure that they will not occupy the roads," Sarona said.Meanwhile, Sarona reiterated that private vehicles including delivery vans and ambulant vendors are not allowed to park along Gatuslao and Luzuriaga Streets.He is hopeful that the market vendors will not occupy the streets to avoid penalties.In 2019, hundreds of vendors from Burgos Public Market, Central Public Market and Libertad Public Market were demolished and their illegal structures were transferred inside the public markets.The demolition of illegal structures is pursuant to Memorandum Circular No. 2019-121 dated July 29, 2019 of the Department of the Interior and Local Government, directing the local government officials, from the mayors down to barangay captains, to implement the clearing of roads.

Negros Occidental eager to go back to normal from Covid-19

Posted: 10 Jul 2022 06:58 AM PDT

NEGROS Occidental Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson said Sunday, July 10, 2022, that the province "would like to go back to normal."Lacson made the statement in response to the call of President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. for local government units (LGUs) to support his administration's booster shot drive against coronavirus disease (Covid-19).Marcos made the call "so that face-to-face classes could resume and the country may reopen its economy."In a virtual speech before the newly elected governors and mayors in Malacañang on Friday night, Marcos cited the importance of booster shots in building a wall of immunity and moving on from the pandemic.Marcos also said he was open to making face masks optional and said there will no longer be wide lockdowns in the country despite the sharp rise in the number of Covid-19 cases."Let's do this booster rollout and we can make sure (that) there is no more lockdown as we really don't want to have lockdowns anymore," Marcos said.For his part, Lacson said, "at the end of the road, we would like to go back to normal and making the use of facemask optional is a step in that direction."He said that local officials have been reminded to push their respective vaccination drives, especially the poor performers.Lacson, however, admitted that vaccination rates in the province are still below our targets.

Pamet Visayas regional confab set in Bacolod City

Posted: 10 Jul 2022 06:58 AM PDT

THE Philippine Association of Medical Technologists Inc. (Pamet)-Negros Occidental Chapter will be hosting the 11th Pamet Visayas Regional Conference at SMX Convention Center in Bacolod City from July 15 to 17, 2022.Pamet National President Rommel Saceda will be joining the event together with some national officers and chapter presidents from all Visayas regions.The conference will carry a hybrid convention platform, of which a virtual and face-to-face conference, will be done following the minimum public health standards set by the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) and in compliance with health regulations of the local government unit.This year's theme is "Medical Technologists: Moving Forward Through Selfless Service and Dedication in the Midst of Adversities."In 2014, Pamet-Negros Occidental also hosted the biggest gathering for medical technologists in the Visayas. (PR)
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