INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
BACOLOD CITY — Advocates of the proposed revival of the Negros Island Region (NIR) lauded the passage Tuesday of the bill on third and final reading by the Senate.
Negros Occidental Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson, however, believed that they could still not heave a sigh of relief until the bill was signed by President Marcos.
“A promise fulfilled, (but) a challenge up ahead,” Lacson said in a statement after learning about the development in the Senate.
READ: Senate approves Negros Island Region bill
Rep. Francisco Benitez of Negros Occidental’s third district, one of the authors of the House version of the bill, said he was grateful to the senators, particularly Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri and JV Ejercito for their commitment to passing the NIR bill.
“It (passage of the bill in the Senate) has been awaited for a long time. All representatives of the island jointly pushed and worked for this passage on behalf of all Negrenses,” he said.
“We are a few steps away from turning it into law that can speed up the delivery of services and facilitate further development in the NIR to the benefit not only of the residents of NIR, but the Visayas and the Philippines as a whole,” he added.
The bill intends to revive the creation of the NIR to be composed of the provinces of Negros Occidental, including the City of Bacolod, Negros Oriental, and Siquijor.
Senate Bill No. 2507, which was sponsored and co-authored by Ejercito, received 22 affirmative votes and no negative votes and abstentions.
President Marcos Jr.’s signature is needed for the NIR bill to become a law.
Negros Occidental is currently part of Western Visayas and Negros Oriental and Siquijor are part of Central Visayas.
Ejercito, whose mother hails from Bacolod City, Negros Occidental’s capital, said the goal is for the six clusters of regional offices to be divided between the two halves of Negros Island to ensure the effective delivery of services.
Zubiri, who traces his roots in Kabankalan City, Negros Occidental, said he was elated that the senators supported the NIR bill.
“I know how long my kababayans have been waiting for this,” he said.
“With the NIR Act, we will unite Negros Occidental, Negros Oriental, and Siquijor into a single administrative region. This way, our compatriots will no longer have difficulty going to the regional government offices in Cebu or Iloilo, because we will bring our services to Negros,” he added.
If passed into law, former Negros Occidental governor Rafael Coscolluela said the NIR would be called the Negros-Siquijor Region or NSR.
“I hope we – the people and officials of NSR – can unite as one in realizing the full potentials of our islands,” he said.
In 2015, the NIR was established through Executive Order No. 183 issued by then President Benigno Aquino III. It was later abolished in 2017 by former President Duterte through Executive Order No. 38.