2 senators defend creation of Negros Island Region

Senators Juan Miguel Zubiri and JV Ejercito

BACOLOD CITY, NEGROS OCCIDENTAL, Philippines — Two senators who authored the law that created the Negros Island Region (NIR) maintained it is both “constitutional and implementable.”

Senators Juan Miguel Zubiri and JV Ejercito, principal authors of Republic Act No. 12000 or the NIR Act that unified the provinces of Negros Occidental, Negros Oriental and Siquijor, hoped that those against the creation of the new region would instead see the benefits the NIR would bring.

“I strongly believe that the NIR is constitutional and implementable. It is necessary to bring in more development to the region. We appeal to the naysayers to give it a chance for the development of our beloved region,” Zubiri told the Inquirer in a text message on Sept. 1.

READ: Unified Negros Island Region: What’s next?

He said he still had to read the objections of the Negros Oriental and Siquijor residents who brought the matter to the Supreme Court.

“But when we legislate measures, we always make sure of the constitutionality of each piece of legislation,” Zubiri said.

Ejercito, for his part, found it sad that some people were trying to block the implementation of the new region, since its creation was aimed at making government services more efficient and accessible to the people in the provinces that comprised the NIR.

“The NIR is expected to stimulate economic growth. I am hoping that this would be realized by those who oppose the landmark law,” he said.

No consultation

Last Friday, two groups composed of residents of Negros Oriental and Siquijor filed a petition before the Supreme Court, seeking to nullify the law creating the NIR.

The petition was filed by the Barug Negros Oriental and Siquijor, represented by Fr. Hendrix Alar, Dr. Maria Lina Eparwa, engineer Wilfredo Magallano and lawyer Marcelino Maxino; and Tingog Siquijodnon, represented by lawyers Jose Imaculado Palmitos and Grace Sumalpong.

They asked the high court to issue a temporary restraining order or a writ of preliminary injunction on the implementation of the NIR and for it to be declared unconstitutional.

They argued that RA 12000, which was signed by President Marcos on June 13, “was never submitted to the people through a plebiscite as constitutionally required, neither was there any public consultation.”

The primacy of the fundamental law, they added, was violated and the people were deprived of their fundamental rights to suffrage and information.

Negros Occidental previously belonged to Western Visayas while Negros Oriental and Siquijor were part of Central Visayas.

The creation of the NIR regional offices has started and the new region was expected to be fully operational by next year.