EO dissolving Negros Island Region awaits Duterte signature

A fishing boat rests on the beach at Bantayan, Bago City Negros Occidental before Supertyphoon Yolanda severely affected fishermen's livelihood and damaged their homes in 2013. 35 mm Caliber/Flickr, file | By Alexis Romero via Philstar

MANILA, Philippines -- President Rodrigo Duterte is set to repeal an executive order of former President Benigno Aquino III that created the Negros Island Region because of its high costs, a Cabinet official said Tuesday.

 

Budget Secretary Benjamin Diokno said a draft executive order (EO) repealing EO No. 183 is waiting for Duterte's signature.

 

“That is not in the budget anymore. It will be repealed. (The draft EO is) pending at the Office of the President,” he said in a chance interview.

 

Diokno said Duterte would sign the EO “anytime soon.”

 

The Budget chief said the creation of the Negros Island Region is an “expensive exercise” as it would require P19 billion.

 

“When we came in, I was confronted with a P19-billion request by various agencies for that new region. I said that’s not affordable. We have other priorities,” Diokno said.

 

“Well, you don’t want to spend P19 billion for a two-province region. In any event, with the federalism, the region will not be created so it will be useless,” he added, referring to the administration’s proposal to change the form of government from unitary to federal.  

 

Diokno assured the public that the repeal of EO No. 183 will not affect the delivery of services to the areas that were supposed to be under the new region.

 

“The services will be provided by existing regions before its creation. You go back to the status quo,” he said.

 

“If you have a database which is good anywhere in the Philippines, you just need a district office.”

 

Aquino signed EO No. 183 in May 2015. The order formed the Negros Island Region, which consists of Negros Oriental and Negros Occidental.

 

Negros Oriental was part of Central Visayas alongside Cebu, Bohol and Siquijor while Negros Occidental used to be part of Western Visayas with Iloilo, Aklan, Antique, Capiz and Guimaras.

 

Aquino claimed that the the creation of the new region would “accelerate the social and economic development” and “improve the delivery of public services” in the two provinces.