BY GILBERT P. BAYORAN
Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson will lead provincial government officials in welcoming Vice President Leni Robredo during her scheduled visit on November 5 at the Provincial Capitol in Bacolod City, disclosed yesterday by Provincial Administrator Rayfrando Diaz.
Diaz said that the provincial government is ready for the visit and courtesy call of VP Leni, a presidential candidate for the 2022 elections.
Lacson, who is a member of the Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC), has yet to announce his presidential candidate to be supported in the next year elections.
Robredo is running as an independent presidential candidate.
Diaz said that Vice President Robredo will not join the traditional Cinco de Noviembre celebrations at the Provincial Capitol.
Aside from Lacson, Robredo is also scheduled to pay courtesy calls to Bishop Patricio Buzon and Bacolod City Mayor Evelio Leonardia.
Volunteer groups and supporters of Vice President Leni Robredo are set to give her a huge welcome when she visits Negros Occidental on November 5, which is also marked as Negros Liberation Day.
Laban Leni Negros Occidental (LLNO), one of the major volunteer groups involved in the preparations, will stage a “highway welcome” for the Vice President – a stationary caravan which was earlier set to reach Bacolod but will now cover only the cities of Talisay and Silay due to ECQ restrictions, its spokesperson Pinky Mirano-Ocampo said.
The National Inter-Agency Task Force placed Bacolod under Alert Level 4 effective Nov. 1-14, forcing organizers, in view of the prohibition on mass gatherings and motorcades, to move key events to localities that remain on Alert Level 2.
Mirano-Ocampo said that they have been closely monitoring the situation and will “abide with LGU protocols”.
“But it’s still all systems go and we have measures in place to ensure that our volunteers will strictly adhere to basic health protocols,” she added.
“We are aiming for a thousand vehicles and we are close to that number,” Ocampo said, adding that all precautions, including fielding of marshals and medical teams, will be taken to maintain safety and order.
Former Gov. Rafael Coscolluela, chair of the Negros for Leni (N4L) movement coordinating the visit, said that they have to revised their plans, including the transfer of key activities initially scheduled within Bacolod City, which is on Alert Level 4, to non-category 4 towns and cities.
Coscolluela said the Vice President’s activities, which include a project site visit and a People’s Assembly, are being coordinated with concerned sectoral groups and communities who are eagerly awaiting VP Lenis’ arrival, with number of assembly participants has been reduced to follow IATF protocols.
“We are very pleased to see the whole-hearted participation of LLNO volunteers, our Negros for Leni team and the many other groups involved in preparations for VP Leni’s visit,“ he added.*
