Macalintal asking SC:
Stop 5th district polls
BY CARLA GOMEZ

A petition will be filed before the Supreme Court today by lawyer Romulo Macalintal to stop the holding of the special election in the fifth district of Negros Occidental on June 2 for being “in violation of the law”.

“It is illegal because it will be held beyond the period as provided by law,” he told the DAILY STAR.

Pending resolution of his petition, Macalintal said he is also asking the court to issue a temporary restraining order to prevent Comelec from disbursing funds in connection with the special elections.

President Benigno Aquino III is not thinking of using nuclear energy to address the country’s power shortage,  he is looking at the renewable energy option,  Presidential Spokesman Edwin Lacierda said last night.

Lacierda, who was in Bacolod City for a road show presentation of what the President has done, was reacting to questions on whether the president would support the call of his cousin, former Pangasinan Rep. Mark Cojuangco for the establishment of nuclear power plants in the country, including Negros Occidental.

It is a move Negros Occidental Gov. Alfredo Marañon Jr. said he supports, but  which several environment groups are opposing.

Undersecretary Demetrio Ignacio of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources lauded Bacolod City Mayor Evelio Leonardia and other city officials yesterday for the establishment of the sanitary landfill in Brgy. Felisa.

Ignacio, who was at the L’ Fisher Hotel in Bacolod for the Pollution Control Association in the Philippines Convention, said that Bacolod is now included in the five percent of the local government units in the country complying with the Solid Waste Management Act, or Republic Act 9003.

“Establishing a sanitary landfill is not easy, as it is costly and it would be difficult to look for a suitable site for it but he (Leonardia) was able to make it because of his strong political will”, Ignacio said.