NIR will speed up service delivery — Albee

BACOLOD City – Following the passage of the Negros Island Region ( NIR) bill in the Senate, Bacolod City mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez expressed optimism that it will hasten public service delivery once enacted into law.

The Senate approved Senate Bill (SB) 2507 on the third and final reading on Tuesday which proposed the placing of the provinces of Negros Occidental, including its capital Bacolod City, Negros Oriental, and Siquijor under NIR.

Ben i t e z s a i d h e i s amenable to providing space and buildings if government agencies ask for them when establishing regional offices in this city.

“We can consider. May napatindog man kita d i r i n g a l e g i s l a t i v e building, ang Old City Hall expand ta man kag bagohon, and on top of that, we have two centers in malls (Government Service Express and the Bacolod Express Service Office) that we can provide for them,” the local chief executive said.

The mayor told the media that after approval in the Senate, a bicameral conference will be conducted before referring the enrolled bill to the Office of the President for signature.

It is reported that former President Rodrigo Duterte signed an executive order (EO) in 2017 that abolished the NIR created during the term of the late President Benigno Aquino III in 2015.

D u t e r t e ’ s E O N o . 3 8 repealed Aquino’s EO No. 183, citing the need to ensure that priority government programs and projects are sufficiently funded.

In March last year, the House of Representatives approved, on its third and final reading, House Bill No. 7355, which seeks the creation of the NIR./