Negros Island Region bill filed anew

BACOLOD CITY, Philippines — A proposal seeking to reunify anew the two provinces of Negros Island into one region has been filed before the House of Representatives.

Rep. Alfredo Marañon III of the second district of Negros Occidental filed House Bill 330 on July 1.

The Negros Island Region (NIR) was first created in 2016 through an executive order issued by then president Benigno Aquino III.

Aquino’s successor former president Rodrigo Duterte abolished the NIR and reverted the provinces to their original regions.

Under the setup, Negros Occidental is part of Western Visayas while its neighbor Negros Oriental belongs to Central Visayas.

Once the provinces are reunified into one region, Marañon’s bill wants the cities of Bacolod and Dumaguete to be the centers of the regional government.

Marañon’s measure is separate from a similar proposal filed by Rep. Jose Francisco Benitez of the third district of Negros Occidental, which seeks to include the island-province of Siquijor.

Although Siquijor was not included in his proposed bill, Marañon said he would welcome the inclusion of the island-province in the NIR.