• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
“It’s a now or never situation for the proposed revival of the Negros Island Region (NIR).”
This was the statement yesterday of Negros Occidental Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson after its approval by the House of Representatives and declaration of support by many senators.
“If it goes beyond this administration, it may not happen at all,” he said.
In a statement, Senator Joseph Victor Ejercito, chairperson of the Senate committee on local government, strongly debunked insinuations that the proposed NIR bill got stuck in his committee.
“There were unforeseen circumstances like the death of the late Negros Oriental Governor Roel Degamo and his successor which delayed the process,” Ejercito said.
“We just need to convince the President of the viability as he is apprehensive because of the cost putting a new region will entail,” he added.
Since the NIR was conceptualized, the issue being raised against it has always been “funding”, Lacson said.
Still, the governor said he remains optimistic that the NIR will be realized.
Supporting the statement of Ejercito, Lacson said he prefers a short delay in the passage so that the committee on local government will have a time to come up with a strong case for NIR.
It’s better to study it well so that they could convince the President, rather than speed it up, he added.
On the issue of the budget, Lacson recalled that there was no budget allotted in the setting up of the previous NIR.
“If it worked out before, I don’t see any reason it will not work out again,” he said, adding that they are not expecting offices to be built immediately.
What is important is “to have a new and functional region,” he pointed out.
Lacson said that he is offering spaces for the regional offices in the 25-hectare lot owned by the provincial government in Talisay City.
It could be also in Kabankalan City, he added.
“We will follow the model of South Cotabato where the regional offices of the region is in one area,” Lacson said.
Both Negros Occidental and Negros Oriental have also agreed to divide the hosting of the regional offices. | GB
