• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
Bacolod City Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez, chair of the Regional Development Council 6, yesterday said he believes that it is not necessary to create another province in Negros Island.
Benitez, a staunch supporter of Negros Island Region, made the statement when asked for his comment on the proposal of Negros Oriental Gov. Roel Degamo to create a new province in Negros Island. His reason being, it will ensure equal voting at the Regional Development Council (RDC) meetings, should the new region push through, noting that Negros Occidental is a bigger and the dominant province.
Under the proposed NIR bill, the new region will be composed of Negros Occidental, Negros Oriental and Siquijor.
“What is the purpose of creating another province?” Benitez asked.
The proposed NIR bill, that includes Siquijor, which is primarily sponsored by his brother, Negros Occidental 3rd district Rep. Jose Francisco Benitez, and co-authored by Negros Island solons, as well as Siquijor, is now up deliberations by the House committee on Appropriations, after approval by the Committee on Local Government.
Rather having a third Negros province, which will take time, as it will go through a process, that might not even happen in this administration, Benitez said.
If the Negros Oriental governor wants equal footing, or fair representation, then we might hear him out, and address the issues at hand, rather than having a third province, Benitez said.
As proposed by Degamo, the new province could be created from the areas covered by Vallehermoso, Negros Oriental, to Escalante City, Negros Occidental.
Aside from cultural differences and the language barrier, Degamo has repeatedly pointed out that the creation of NIR will put Negros Oriental at a disadvantage, citing a study made by the Silliman University.
He also noted that Negros Occidental has seven political districts and 11 cities, compared to the three districts of Negros Oriental, with only six cities. That would also mean there will be no equal share in resources and income, he added.
With the smaller province of Siquijor joining NIR, Lacson said “we have to assure them, that we are here, to help all the provinces, under the new region.”
Negros Oriental and Siquijor are both under Region 7, while Negros Occidental belongs to Region 6.
Lacson also said that the chairmanship of RDC can be done through a rotation basis, among the three provinces under NIR.
Asked if he may able to convince him to change his stand against NIR, Lacson recalled that Degamo was the last to air his support for the new region, before it was dissolved in 2017.
We’re hoping, that the same thing will happen, he added.
While he did not reject outright the proposal of Degamo to create a new province during their meeting, Lacson said he believes that it is not the solution to the issue of “equal footing.”
There are other ways to assure them that nobody will be left behind, he added.
To create a new province might even delay the creation of NIR, Lacson further said.*
