Comelec warning bets
against Holy Week ban
BY CARLA GOMEZ

Election Provincial Supervisor Wil Arceño yesterday warned candidates that campaigning is prohibited on Maundy Thursday and Good Friday, and that the campaign period for local bets will kick off instead on Saturday this week.

He also reminded local candidates to ensure that their campaign materials are posted in common poster areas to avoid facing legal action for violating Commission on Election rules.

The original date set for the campaign period for local bets to start was March 29 but this falls on Good Friday.

PNP orders
stepped-up checkpoints
BY GILBERT BAYORAN

Barely a week before the start of the campaign period for local candidates on March 29, the Police Regional Office 6 ordered the Negros Occidental Police Provincial Office and Bacolod City Police Office to maximize the conduct of checkpoints, and application of search warrants for owners of loose firearms, as a deterrent to crimes.

This was after Senior Supt. Allan Guisihan, PRO6 deputy regional director for Operations, revealed yesterday that NOPPO and BCPO have lower accomplishments in the conduct of checkpoints, compared to other provincial and city police offices in the Western Visayas.

Guisihan, who met with police commanders at Camp Alfredo Montelibano Sr. in Bacolod City Saturday, said NOPPO and BCPO accomplished only 30 percent of the targeted number of checkpoints, as required by the regional police office.

Central Negros Electric Cooperative registered a drop in electricity consumption by 8.36 megawatts as Bacolod City celebrated Earth Hour 2013 Saturday night, CENECO general manager Sulpicio Lagarde Jr. said yesterday.

Bacolod Mayor Evelio Leonardia led the ceremonial switching off of lights for one hour, from 8:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. at rites SM City Bacolod.

Earth Hour is a worldwide event organized by the World Wide Fund that began in Sydney, Australia in 2007. Today, it is the world's largest environmental event, annually uniting over 150 nations to fight climate change via its 60-minute switch-off.