• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
Negros Occidental Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson anticipates that Negros solons will push for allocations for the island region during the national budget deliberations at the House of Representatives.
This follows the revelation of Senator Imee Marcos on Thursday that the NIR budget was not included in the proposed P6.352 trillion budget for 2025, since the budget preparations were already completed when the NIR was signed into law by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., in June this year.
Under Republic Act 12000 or the NIR Act, a total of P3.6 billion, spread out over three years, has been allocated to establish regional offices for NIR.
Lacson admitted that he was already aware of the non-inclusion of the NIR budget in the 2025 National Expenditure Program, which was forwarded by Malacañang last week to Congress for deliberations.
Now that it is already in Congress, maybe our legislators can include it, especially our district representatives, the governor said, apparently referring to the solons of NIR and Siqujior.
I hope they will be able to successfully convince the national government to include the NIR budget for 2025, Lacson said.
The NIR technical working group, composed of three NIR governors and its solons, as well as representatives of the Department of Interior and Local Government, National Economic Development Authority, and the Department of Budget and Management, is slated to meet on August 9 to discuss and formulate the Internal Rules and Regulations in the implementation of the new region in Visayas, among others.
In a meeting with Negros Oriental Gov. Manuel Sagarbarria and Negros Occidental Vice Gov. Jeffrey Ferrer on Thursday in Bacolod City, Senator Marcos said she is hopeful that they can discuss it with her brother, PBBM, and will also seek the opinion of the country’s economic managers.
In the previous iteration of the NIR, the existing budget of national government offices in Negros Occidental and Negros Oriental were initially utilized for the new region to be operationalized.
During the TWG meeting, Lacson said he would like to know where particularly, the regional offices will be.
“I still prefer one place for all regional offices of NIR,” he said, adding that “maybe in Kabankalan City and Mabinay, which was the original plan, “especially if there is a good property in that area.”
Mayor Miranda, who led yesterday the 27th charter anniversary celebrations of Kabankalan City, said he is “ready and excited” to host the different regional offices of national agencies.
Miranda disclosed that representatives of 12 national agencies have already visited his office and requested space for their regional office.
He recalled that the Central Philippines State University (CPSU) had allocated 500 hectares of land for the regional center.
Miranda revealed that Philippine National Police, Departments of Agriculture and Agrarian Reform, Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA), the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), the National Food Authority (NFA) have expressed interest in putting up regional offices inside the campus of CPSU in Barangay Camingawan, Kabankalan City.
He added that the city government is willing to help national agencies such as road paving for access roads, even security and water connection, if the agencies will ask the city.
“We want them to start functioning even for just a short period of time,” Miranda further said.*
