• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
Victorias City Mayor Javier Miguel Benitez took his oath office as the elected representative of the Negros Occidental Third District before Silay City Regional Trial Court (RTC) Executive Judge Dyna Doll Chiongson-Trocio on Thursday (June 5).
The oathtaking ceremony was witnessed by his mother, Dominique Lopez-Benitez, founder and president of the Nikki Cares Foundation Inc.
His father, incoming Bacolod City Lone District Rep. Alfredo Abelardo Benitez, is also slated to take his oath of office before Barangay 18 chairwoman Madeline Diaz on June 20.
After a successful term as mayor of Victorias City, the younger Benitez aims to promote transformative leadership in the Third District through his Asenso Plus platform.
This development agenda envisions bringing both tangible and intangible progress throughout the district, focusing on health, skills training and upskilling, agriculture, education, and climate resiliency, a statement from his office, said.
In his Facebook account, the neophyte lawmaker said he will file a bill for the creation of a regional trial court in Victorias City and an additional one in Silay City.
He noted that the current RTC in Silay serves more than 1,200 cases, three times more than the Bacolod average.
“It’s time justice moved closer and faster for our people,” he added. | GB
