Negros Governors Readies Defense for NIR
Negros Occidental governor Alfredo Marañon, Jr., and Negros Oriental governor Roel Degamo are getting ready to defend the Negros Island Region (NIR) during a hearing at the House of Representatives to be conducted by the House Special Committee on Visayas Development chaired by Representative Alejandro Mirasol (Neg Occ, 5th District) on November 8.
Directors of government agencies in NIR and the Provincial Planning and Development Coordinators were instructed to prepare their accomplishment reports to show the house committee members that the NIR is already functional. The proposed National Budget is still in the House for approval and the NIR congressmen can still inquire on the reasons why the proposed 2017 NIR budget was not included by the Department of Budget and Management.
DA-NIR to Defend Proposed Budget
Joyce Wendam, DA-NIR Regional Director, is getting ready to defend the P400 million proposed budget of the agency during a hearing set on November 8 to be conducted by the House Special Committee on Visayas Development. The proposed budget, divided on equal sharing for the two NIR provinces, are for the provision of services to farmers and implementation of projects, especially in Negros Oriental which has high incidences of poverty. She also added that DA services and projects are much easier to implement in the present one-island set-up.
Senator Aquino Files Resolution for NIR Inquiry
Senate Resolution No. 212 was filed by Senator Bam Aquino, cousin of former President Benigno Aquino, to look into the national government’s plans to abolish the Negros Island Region. It was during the term of his cousin that Executive Order No. 183 was signed creating the Negros Island Region, joining Negros Occidental (from Region 6) and Negros Oriental (from Region 7).
Aquino stated in his resolution that there is a need for the national government to have a more in-depth evaluation on the consequences of their actions should they decide to abolish NIR. He further added that it would be more advantageous for the Negrenses on both sides of the island to have an administration center for greater efficiency in development projects implementation.
