HISTORY OF SAGAY CITY

Sagay can be identified in the map of Negros Occidental

because of its "ice-cream cone" shape sliced from the northern tip of
Negros. It is bounded in the north by Asuncion Pass and th e Visayan
Sea; the city of Talisay, the municipality of Calatrava in the south;
cities of Cadiz and Silay in the west and the city of Escalante and
municipality of Toboso in the east.

DURING SPANISH ERA

Sagay was originally called Argüelles when Lt. Francisco
Rodríguez and Basilio Córdova founded it in 1860 in the mouth of the
Bulanon River. Later, by the order of the Spanish governor the town
was transferred to Pueblo de Magallanes (now known as Old Sagay)
in honor of Ferdinand Magellan.

Having the status of a pueblo, Sagay was entitled to have a

Capitán Del Pueblo, the highest town official during the time. The
first to be appointed to this position by the Spanish Governor was
Eulalio Rodríguez. Gregorio Parreño, then Pedro Catalbás y
Villanueva, later succeeded him.

During the Philippine Revolution, Sagay contributed its share to what proved to be a
successful national struggle for independence. The hard-won First Philippine Republic was
however short-lived when the country passed to the hands of another colonial power, the
United States of America in 1898.

THE AMERICAN PERIOD

In 1906, during the administration of the second President Benjie Adolfo, the name of
the town was officially changed to Sagay. The name was taken from the semi-spherical shell
called "sigay", which can be found in the area. The American influence seeped into every aspect
of Sagay's life, politically and culturally. At this period of Sagay's history, land transportation
began to supplant sea travel, but the seaside community continued to flourish. The first public
schools conducted in English were established. Mr. Cornelio Pascual, Sr. was the first English
Teacher assigned in Vito. American missionaries were sent to tutor more Filipino English
teachers.

Meanwhile, sometime in 1907, the Insular Lumber Company, reputed to be the biggest
hardwood lumber mill in the world, was established in what is now called Barangay Fabrica.
Though measures to prevent the destruction of Sagay's rich forest were made, reforestation
programs failed. Later, the old forest areas were converted mostly into sugarcane fields and
some into cornfields. With the exhaustion of the forest resources of Sagay, the ILCO –
Philippines was phased out in 1975 and later transferred to Hinoba-an.
 A major industrial development gave Sagay another big step forward: the establishment
of Lopez Sugar Corporation in the 1920s. Also during these years, sugar, copra, lumber and
fishing became the important source of income for the inhabitants. The economic growth of
Sagay brought about influx of migrants from Iloilo, Guimaras, Cebu and Bohol. This trend made
Sagay a melting pot of ethnically-different but equally-hardworking Cebuanos and Ilonggos.
With these developments, business and industry flourished. Leading both sectors were big
businessmen and industrialists like the Lopezes, the Cuaycongs, the Jisons, the Gamboas, and
the Vasquezes. The sugar boom brought the "old families" into the industry like the Pueys, the
Nichols, the Katalbases, and the Tupases, which branched out to the Marañons, the de la Pazes,
the Ibrados and the Libo-ons.
WORLD WAR II
During the Japanese occupation, two Civil Governments existed in Sagay. Under the
Japanese national government of Jose Laurel, Sr., Vicente Katalbas was appointed mayor, while
the resistance government of the province, headed by Alfredo Montelibano, Sr. as governor,
appointed Tomas Londres as Mayor whose seat of government was in the mountain areas of
Sitio Balibag, Lopez Jaena. Their term however, abruptly ended when the combined Filipino and
American forces liberated the province from the Japanese at the early part of 1945. When
Sergio Osmeña, Sr., as vice-president to Manuel L. Quezon who died during the war, took over
the helm of the national government, Teodoro Lopez, Sr. was appointed Mayor of Sagay. During
his short term, Teodoro Lopez, Sr. concentrated in rebuilding the administrative machinery of
the local government.

Several hundreds of thousands of Filipino soldiers and officers of the 7th, 72nd and 75th
Infantry Division of the Philippine Commonwealth Army and the 7th Constabulary Regiment of
the Philippine Constabulary liberated and re-occupied the town of Sagay by attacking and
driving off Japanese troops in 1945.

The factories were destroyed and the economy was in shambles. A Eusebio Lopez
Memorial School Building in Barangay Paraiso served as the incarceration area for captured
Filipino soldiers and American pilots and soldiers. It also served as the headquarters of Fourth
Flight Division of the Japanese Imperial Air Force whose airfield was located in Pula-Bunglas
area in Barangay Malubon. During the last days of the war, the Fourth Flight Division of the
Japanese Imperial Airforce organized kamikaze or suicide units to be stationed here and in
Bacolod. Known later as the Third Regiment Suicide Corps, it was headed by Major Tsuneharu
Sirai with Capt. Tetsuzu Kimura as his Chief Staff Officer. Of its 59 pilots and crews, 30 were
killed in the Battle of Leyte Gulf which they played a major role as kamikaze pilots. The Pula –
Bunglas area of Barangay Malubon served as the Japanese landing field for the Fourth Flight
Division. It was also a site where the local soldiers, guerrillas and civilians, after Japanese spies
identified them as guerrilla members or collaborators, were forced to dig holes and
consequently executed and buried. Old residents believe that almost 1,542 people were buried
here.

Barrio 3 Wharf, Fabrica served as the transport point of processed lumber destined to
Japan from Insular Lumber Company and also a docking area of Japanese supply ship during the
war-torn years. The Iglanggam Bridge at Barangay Tadlong served as the dumping site of
executed local soldiers, guerrillas and civilians. This is also known as the site where confiscated
money, especially silver Peso coins encased in concrete blocks, were dumped by the retreating
Japanese soldiers.

Balibag Hill, Lopez Jaena was the place where the set of resistance government of Free
Sagay under Mayor Tomas Londres (appointed by Island Governor Alfredo Montelibano, Sr.)
was established. It was also known as tabo-an or market place during the war and in 1944, a
group of Japanese soldiers killed about 27 homeguards or "toltog" guerrillas. After the mass
killing, the Japanese soldiers set the whole area on fire, burning the shanties and the dead. The
Japanese "puppet" government under Vicente Lacson Katalbas was established at the Big
House, Central Lopez, Paraiso. A Japanese barracks and checkpoint was established. A Japanese
anti-aircraft still can be found inside the ground of the house. At Barangay Poblacion II,
Japanese zero fighters left bullet holes when they intended to destroy the water supply of the
people during the last days of the war. Holes from 60mm machine-guns left an indelible mark
on the water tank.

A training site of USAFFE (United States Army Forces in the Far East), under the
supervision of Lt. Dominador Gaerland, was established at Tangnonon, Barangay Fabrica at the
ancestral home of Lopez Kabayao. On July 26, 1942, President Franklin D. Roosevelt of the
United States of America ordered a national mobilization in the Philippines and on August 23,
1942, the first group of reservist in Negros were called on duty by virtue of Philippine Army HQ
order of August 4 and they were trained here. The first group reported in the said mobilization
camp constituted the 71st Infantry Regiment.

POST WAR PERIOD

The first election held right after the Second World War made Jose B. Puey, Sr. and
Amalio Cueva, Sr. Mayor and Vice Mayor respectively. However, shortly after, Mayor Jose B.
Puey, Sr. was appointed member of the Provincial Board of Negros Occidental thus Vice Mayor
Amalio Cueva, Sr. took over the Municipal leadership and through his initiative, the seat of
government was transferred to its present site, Dalusan. Incidentally, the transfer signaled the
diminishing importance of sea travel and the takeover of overland transportation as the
conveyor of progress and development. Old Sagay (the previous seat of government) is an old
coastal center of population while Dalusan is a late highway occurrence. The transfer was made
possible partly through land donations for the town site by Doña Rosario Cooper and the heirs
of the late Clayton Nichols. Schools, markets and commercial establishments were soon
established. Jose B. Puey, Sr. remained Provincial Board Member until his election as
congressman for the first District of Negros Occidental in 1953.

In the late 1950s, two Sagaynon politicians were in the forefront of Negros politics, Jose
B. Puey, Sr. (Congressman from 1953 to 1957) and Alfredo E. Marañon, Sr. (Board Member
from 1956 to 1959). This meant that provincial and national aid were extended to Sagay. More
roads and school buildings were constructed, thousands of hectares of logged off area of the
Insular Lumber Company were planted with coconut trees and sugarcane. Sherman Hill, near
Barangay Bato was discovered to contain rich deposits of the highest silica. The growing
markets for sea products brought about unprecedented boom in the fishing industry for which
the coastal waters of Sagay proved to equal the demand. The municipal population rose to
more than 60,000 and the revenue increased. After Mayor Amalio Cueva, came Tereso Canoy,
Bruno Cueva, Sr. and Quintin Katalbas.

In 1963, Jose H. Puey, Jr. was elected mayor of Sagay. The income continued to rise.
More schools were built and more roads, linking the barangays to the town capital, were
constructed. The inefficient electrical system was updated, fire fighting equipment and the
police units were modernized. It was during this time that Alfredo Marañon Sr. began
entertaining the idea of putting up another sugar mill in Sagay which farmers can partly own.
He campaigned for support, but there was too much opposition even from some of his close
friends. Nevertheless, his idea became a reality when in 1967, shortly after his death, Sagay
Central Inc. was born. Mr. Marañon's dream was made real through the help of President
Ferdinand E. Marcos and the then Philippine National Bank President Roberto S. Benedicto who
both shared his vision for Sagay. With the new sugar mill at Barangay Bato, new areas were
opened and planted with sugarcane. Today the new sugar mill factory is benefiting hundreds of
small farmers.

The then Mayor, Congressman and Governor of Negros Occidental Alfredo G. Marañon,
Jr. assumed the political leadership of Sagay in 1972. Under his administration, Sagay acquired a
new town hall, a municipal gymnasium, a livestock auction market, public markets for a number
of barangays and municipal wharves in barangays Vito and Old Sagay. He caused the
organization of Sagay Water District in 1978. He effected the purchase of a municipal
subdivision for the municipal employees in 1979. These achievements by themselves have
helped make Sagay a first-class C municipality (the highest in the entire Negros). The then
Mayor Alfredo G. Marañon, Jr.'s successful negotiation of the sponsorship contract with the
German District of Osterholz is his most important achievement.

THE CONVERSION INTO A CITY

It had been a long time aspiration to get Sagay city status. The leadership of Mayor
Joseph G. Marañon and Vice Mayor Fortunato S. Javelosa inspired the authorship of
Congressman Alfredo G. Marañon of House Bill No. 6543, "An Act Converting the Municipality
of Sagay into a component city of Negros Occidental" during the 10th Congress. Passing
through the legislation process, a public hearing was held in Sagay City on February 22, 1996.
On May 3, 1996, Sen. Raul Roco sponsored the Senate Bill No. 1191, the Senate version of the
cityhood. On June 11, 1996, then President Fidel V. Ramos signed into law RA8192, now the
charter of Sagay City. On June 10, 1996, the residents voted and ratified RA8192 and made
Sagay, officially Sagay City.

THE CULTURAL FEATURES OF NEGROS OCCIDENTAL.

Negros Occidental faces the island-province of Guimaras and the province of Iloilo on
Panay Island to the northwest across the Panay Gulf and the Guimaras Strait. The primary
spoken language is Hiligaynon and the predominant religious denomination is Roman
Catholicism. Bacolod is the capital, seat of government and the most populous city of the
province, but is governed independently as a highly urbanized city. With a population of
2,497,261 inhabitants, it is the most populated province in Western Visayas, the second most-
populous province in the Visayas after Cebu and the 8th most-populous province of the
Philippines.

GEOGRAPHY
Negros Occidental is located in the western side of Negros Island, the fourth largest
island in the Philippines, with a total land area of 7,802.54 square kilometres (3,012.58 sq mi). If
Bacolod is included for geographical purposes, the province has an area of 7,965.21 square
kilometres (3,075.38 sq mi). The province is approximately 375 kilometres (233 mi) long from
north to south. It is bounded by the Visayan Sea in the north, Panay Gulf on the west, Negros
Oriental province and Tañon Strait on the east and Sulu Sea on the south. Negros is basically
volcanic, making its soil ideal for agriculture. Eighty percent of all arable land in the island
region is cultivated.

The north and western parts of the province are largely composed of plains and gentle
slopes. A mountain range lines the eastern part of the province, forming the basis of the border
with Negros Oriental. Kanlaon Volcano, which is partially located in Negros Oriental, rises to a
height of 2,465 m (8,087 ft) and is the highest peak in the Visayas.

ADMINISTRATIVE DIVISIONS
Negros Occidental comprises 19 municipalities and 13 cities, further subdivided into 662
barangays. It has the most chartered cities among all the provinces in the Philippines. Although
Bacolod serves as the capital, it is governed independently from the province as a highly
urbanized city.

DEMOGRAPHICS
The population of Negros Occidental in the 2015 census was 2,497,261 people, with a
density of 320 inhabitants per square kilometre or 830 inhabitants per square mile. If Bacolod is
included for geographical and statistical purposes, the total population is 3,059,136 people,
with a density of 384/km2 (995/sq mi).

Residents of Negros are called "Negrenses" (and less often "Negrosanons") and many
are of either pure/mixed Austronesian heritage, with foreign ancestry (i.e. Chinese and/or
Spanish) as minorities. Negros Occidental is predominantly a Hiligaynon-speaking province with
84% of residents speaking it as a first language, because of its linguistic ties with Iloilo. Cebuano
is spoken by the remaining 16%, especially in the cities and towns facing the Tañon Strait, due
to their proximity to the island-province of Cebu. A mixture of Hiligaynon and Cebuano is
spoken in Sagay and surrounding places, which both face Iloilo and Cebu. Filipino and English
are widely spoken and used on both sides of the island for educational, literary and official
purposes.
 Negros Occidental is the second most-populous province in the Visayas after Cebu,
having the second largest number of congressional districts and the 7th most-populous (4th if
highly urbanized cities and independent component cities are included in the population of
corresponding provinces) in the Philippines based on the 2015 Census. As of 2010, the
population of registered voters are 1,478,260.
RELIGION
Catholicism is the predominant religion, with over 2 million adherents. Negros
Occidental falls under the jurisdictions of the Roman Catholic Dioceses of Bacolod, San Carlos &
Kabankalan. Other major Christian denominations include Baptist churches, Aglipayan Church,
Iglesia ni Cristo, Seventh-day Adventist Church, and Evangelicalism. Islam is adhered by a
sizeable minority, with 1,842 claiming it as their religion.

ECONOMY
Known as the "Sugarbowl of the Philippines", the sugar industry is the lifeblood of the
economy of Negros Occidental, producing more than half of the country's sugar. There are 15
sugar centrals located throughout the lowland areas the north and west of the island,
stretching from northwest along the coasts of the Visayan Sea and Guimaras Strait. Among the
larger mills are in San Carlos, La Carlota, Bago, Binalbagan, Kabankalan, Sagay, Silay, Murcia and
Victorias. Victorias Mill in Victorias City is the largest sugar mill in the country, and the world's
largest integrated sugar mill and refinery. Sugar is transported from plantations to refineries by
large trucks that use the national highway.

A fishing industry is found in Cadiz City, and other fishponds that dot the province. One
of the country's largest copper mines is located in Sipalay City. There also exists a cottage
industry which produced handicrafts made from indigenous materials.

The province is rich in mineral deposits. Minerals that abound in the province are
primary copper with estimated reserve of 591 million metric tons and gold ore with estimated
reserve of 25 million tons. Silver and molybdenum deposits are also abundant, as well as non-
metallic minerals suitable for agricultural and industrial uses. Notwithstanding its great
potential, the mining industry in Negros Occidental has remained virtually dormant since the
biggest copper mine in Sipalay suspended its operation in the year 2000.
Bacolod is the center of commerce and finance in Negros Occidental. It has oil
companies, factories, bottling plants, allied industrial businesses, steel fabrication, power
generation, agri-businesses, prawn culture and other aqua-culture ventures. It is also the
Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) hub of the Negros Island Region of the Philippines. Bacolod
has an estimated 35,000 workforce in the IT-BPO industry working in 20 major companies.
Among the notable BPO companies operating in the city are Convergys, Teleperformance, TTEC,
Focus Direct International, Inc. – Bacolod, Panasiatic Solutions, Ubiquity Global Services,
Transcom Asia and iQor. As of 2019, Negros Occidental has a total of 13 operating PEZA-
registered IT Parks and Centers.

In 2012, a two-hectare portion of the four-hectare Paglaum Sports Complex was

partitioned for the construction of the provincial government-owned Negros First CyberCentre
(NFCC) as an IT-BPO Outsourcing Hub with a budget of P674-million. It is located at Lacson
corner Hernaez Streets in Bacolod and offers up to 22,000 square meters of mixed IT-BPO and
commercial spaces. Its facilities are divided into three sections — Information Technology,
Commercial Support Facilities, and Common IT Facilities. It was inaugurated in April 2015 in
rites led by President Benigno S. Aquino III.[30] The area was initially a residential zone and has
been reclassified as a commercial zone as approved by the Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance.
By 2014, Negros Occidental is the province with the highest income in all of the Philippines,
earning an average of P3.332 billion.

FOOD AND AGRICULTURE

Negros Occidental's output of more than 1 million metric tons for crop year 2002–2003
accounts for nearly half of the country's sugar production in an industry that generates an
estimated annual revenue of more than ₱18 billion. There are 12 sugar mills in the province, of
which only 10 are presently operational. Victorias Milling Company has the highest rated
capacity with 15,000 tonnes cane per day.
However, the volatility of the sugar industry forced the province to shift, albeit slowly, to
other high-value crops and alternative industries. The diversification has proven to be highly
successful. Production of rice, the basic commodity for food security, has been increasing. By
2003, annual output of 437 thousand metric tons of palay was 33% better than two years ago.
This allowed the province to significantly raise its sufficiency level from 65% to more than 84%.
The improvement could be attributed to the introduction and promotion of hybrid rice, which
increased rice yields to 3.8 metric tons per hectare. Because of the success of the program, area
planted to hybrid rice has increased nearly fivefold. The highest hybrid yield was recorded at
10.3 tons per hectare.

Corn also registered increasing gains. Production for 2003 of 42 thousand metric tons
outperformed 2001 output by 18%. Average yield per hectare has also grown by 18%. Other
fruit and vegetable crops, except for banana and cassava, likewise improved their harvest.
Harvested coconut was placed at 139 million nuts, while production of banana; fruit and
vegetable crops totaled 110 million kilograms. Livestock and poultry are industries where
Negros Occidental has strongly diversified.

With the province successfully quarantined from the foot and mouth disease and bird
flu, as well as with other endemic diseases under control, total production of livestock and
poultry in 2003 of 49 thousand metric tons exceeded estimated local demand by 18%. Fishing is
likewise an industry where the province has remained focused. After all, 9 of its cities and 16 of
its municipalities are located along the coastline and a great portion of the population depends
on fishing for their livelihood.

The area for exploitation by this industry is huge, covering most of the coastal areas and
the rich fishing grounds of the Visayan Sea on the north, Sulu Sea on the south, Tañon Strait on
the east and Guimaras Strait and Panay Gulf at the west. These rich coastal areas and fishing
grounds continue to be generous to the people of Negros Occidental. In 2003, products from
deep-sea fishing, municipal marine and inland waters, and aquaculture reached 87 thousand
metric tons, 30% better than 2001 production.

CULTURE AND ARTS

Negros Occidental has long been a center of culture and arts; the wealth brought about
by the sugar industry made sure that the Negrense principalía enjoyed an above-average
standard of living.

Silay City, to the north of the capital of Bacolod, nicknamed the "Paris of Negros", is the
cultural and artistic center of Negros Island Region. It has 30 heritage houses declared by the
national historical institute, most notable of which is Balay Negrense; it is also the hometown of
National Artist of the Philippines for Architecture Leandro Locsin and international mezzo-
soprano Conchita Gaston. This blossoming in art was due to the economical importance of the
area during the Spanish era, Negros became probably the most hispanized and pro-Spanish
area, due to the enormous investments of Spain in the sugar business.

Another famous treasure of Negrense art heritage can be found in Victorias City, within
the confines of the Victorias Milling Company in its chapel is the world-famous mural of the
Angry Christ, painted by artist Alfonso Ossorio, a scion of the Ossorio family who owned the
mill. The Negrenses' joie de vivre is manifest in the various festivals all over the province,
foremost being the famous MassKara Festival of Bacolod, Pasalamat Festival of La Carlota,
Bailes de Luces of La Castellana and Pintaflores Festival of San Carlos. These and other local
festivals are featured during the Pana-ad sa Negros Festival staged every April at the 25-hectare
tree-lined Panaad Stadium in Bacolod. Dubbed as the "Festival of Festivals", Pana-ad brings
together the 13 cities and 19 towns in a showcase of history, arts and culture, tourism, trade,
commerce and industry, beauty and talent as well as games and sports.

Negros Occidental is rich in structures and buildings that are remnants of a once affluent
lifestyle. The Palacio Episcopal (1930), San Sebastian Cathedral (1876), and the Capitol Building
(1931) are popular landmarks. In most towns, steam locomotives that used to cart sugarcane
from the fields to refineries attract steam-engine enthusiasts from all over the world. There are
also impressive churches all over the province, both built recently and during the Spanish era.

FESTIVALS
The Panaad sa Negros Festival, also called simply as the Panaad Festival (sometimes
spelled as Pana-ad), is a festival held annually during the month of April in Bacolod, the capital
of Negros Occidental province in the Philippines. Panaad is the Hiligaynon word for "vow" or
"promise"; the festival is a form of thanksgiving to Divine Providence and commemoration of a
vow in exchange for a good life. The celebration is held at the Panaad Park, which also houses
the Panaad Stadium, and is participated in by the 13 cities and 19 towns of the province. For
this reason, the province dubs it the "mother" of all its festivals.
 The first Panaad sa Negros Festival was held at Capitol Park and Lagoon in a three-day
affair in 1993 that started April 30. The festival was held at the lagoon fronting the Provincial
Capitol for the first four years. As the festival grew each year, it became necessary to locate a
more spacious venue. In 1997, the festival was held at the reclaimed area near where the
Bredco Port is located today. The construction of the Panaad Stadium and sports complex
paved the way for the establishment of the Panaad Park as the permanent home of the festival.

INFRASTRUCTURE
Through its capital, Bacolod, Negros Occidental is only 50 minutes from Manila and 30
minutes from Cebu by air. By sea, it is an 18-hour cruise from Manila and an hour by fast ferries
from Iloilo. It is also accessible by sea and land trip from Cebu via Escalante City, San Carlos City
and Dumaguete City in Negros Oriental. Travel from Bacolod to Dumaguete is only 5 to 6 hours
by land. Seven airline companies, including Philippine Airlines, Cebu Pacific and Air Philippines,
serve the province. Four inter-island shipping lines call on nine seaports of Negros Occidental.

Bacolod-Silay International Airport

On January 18, 2008, the new airport was inaugurated in Silay City, 16 kilometers
north of Bacolod. The new airport replaced the Bacolod Domestic Airport. The new
airport runway is of international standards and was constructed to facilitate future
landings of international flights to serve the growing number of tourists visiting Negros
Occidental each year.

Kabankalan City Domestic Airport

A new airport designed to serve the general area of Kabankalan City. The airport
would be the second airport in Negros Occidental, after the Bacolod-Silay International
Airport and the third airport on Negros Island Region. It is located four kilometers
northeast of Kabankalan City proper on a 100-hectare site in Barangay Hilamonan.
Completion of the airport is still undergoing.

Sipalay Airport
On August 3, 2017, Air Juan started to open flights to Sipalay City from Cebu and
Iloilo. Flights from Cebu to Sipalay will be every Wednesday while Sipalay to Cebu on
Sundays; Iloilo to Sipalay on Mondays and return on Thursdays. Sipalay Mayor Oscar C.
Montilla, Jr. had been looking forward to having an airline company operate in the city
to boost tourism. The small Sipalay airport with a 1,400-meter runway is located in a 10-
hectare property of the local government. Negros Occidental Governor Alfredo G.
Marañon, Jr. has committed to support the planned concreting of the runway.

Road network and accommodations

All cities and municipalities are linked by an extensive road and bridge network
stretching more than 1,500 kilometers crisscrossing the province with seven alternative
scenic routes to the nearby province of Negros Oriental. Within the province, travel is
also easy, comfortable and even enjoyable with air-conditioned and non-aircon buses or
metered taxis. Car rental services are also available. However, the jeepney is still the
most common means of transport among the towns and cities. For accommodations,
visitors may choose from a wide range of about 67 hotels, pension and lodging houses
and tourist inns. The better known hotels are L’ Fisher, Bacolod Convention Plaza,
Pagcor Hotel, and Business Inn, Sugarland Hotel, all in Bacolod.

Energy and water

The province has adequate power and water supplies. It is currently
interconnected to the Visayas Power Grid whose main sources of power are
geothermal. Aside from its existing 170 megawatts capacity, Negros Island by the year
2006 has an additional 105 megawatts of locally produced power from geothermal
plants in Bago and in barangay Palinpinon, Valencia, Negros Oriental, and from bagasse
co-generation facility of First Farmers Sugar Mill. Ample water supply for household,
commercial, industrial and agricultural uses is assured by 73 thousand hectares of
proclaimed and protected major watersheds, regular rainfall and six major river
systems.

San Carlos City is going to play a major role in renewable energy as it will be the site of
San Carlos Solar Energy INC. It is a solar farm with an initial capacity of 13 MW in Phase
1, and a provision for an addition of 7 MW in Phase 2. It is intended to provide power to
the grid throughout the year, at pre-determined Feed-In-Tariff rates set by the ERC. It is
a DOE approved stand-alone solar power plant consisting of approximately 52,000
modules.

Communications and medical facilities

International direct dialing, fiber optic data lines and internet services are
accessible in most areas of the province. Also, GSM, digital and analog cellular networks
provide good coverage in Bacolod and other areas, including international roaming. The
medical and health care needs of the people of Negros Occidental and its guests are
presently being met by 20 government hospitals and 10 private hospitals, as well as
several city and municipal health centers, barangay health stations and day-care
centers. Doctors, nurses and other medical personnel serving these facilities are not
only competent but also very caring towards their patients.

Banking, finance and accessibility

Banking and finance is likewise a thriving industry in Negros Occidental.
According to the latest count, there are 389 financial institutions competing for
businesses in the province. 149 of these are banks. Negros Occidental offers several
advantages for those who are doing business in the province. It is strategically located
near Metro Manila, Metro Cebu and Metro Davao, all major international gateways with
maximum travel time of only about 4 hours between the Philippines and its neighbors in
Southeast Asia. It is equipped with major infrastructure facilities for easy travel and
shipment of goods within and outside of Negros.
 It has information and communication facilities with connection capabilities necessary
for, among others, call center operations for business communication and transmission
of data. The province has abundant water supply and dependable power supply.
Modern health care facilities with medical services are available, as well as academic
institutions.

LANDMARKS

Panaad Park and Sports Complex

The Panaad Park and Sports Complex houses the Panaad Stadium which is a
multi-purpose stadium in the province. It is currently used mostly for football matches,
and was used for the 2005 South East Asian Games. It was the venue of the pre-
qualifiers of the 2007 ASEAN Football Championship or ASEAN Cup, in which the
Philippines, Cambodia, Timor Leste, Brunei and Laos participated. The stadium has a
seating capacity of 15,500, but holds around 20,000 people with standing areas. It is
unofficially designated as the home stadium of the Philippines national football team.
Aside from the association football field, it also has a rubberized track oval, an Olympic-
size swimming pool and other sports facilities.

The stadium is also the home of Panaad sa Negros Festival, a week-long

celebration participated in by all cities and municipalities in the province held annually
every summer. The festival is highlighted by merry-making and field demonstrations at
the stadium. The stadium itself features replicas of the landmarks of the 13 cities and
municipalities of Negros Occidental.

Capitol Park and Lagoon

The Capitol Park and Lagoon is a provincial park located right in the heart of
Bacolod, Negros Occidental, in the Philippines. One of the landmarks of the park is the
statue of a carabao (water buffalo) being pulled by a woman. This statue is located at
the northern end of the lagoon. On the other end, there is also another carabao
sculpture but the figure is being pulled by a man.

Local everyday activities in the park include jogging, aerobics, school dance rehearsals,
promenaders, arnisadors, and martial arts practitioners.

Fountain of Justice
The Fountain of Justice is a historic landmark in Bacolod, Negros Occidental,
Philippines. It marks the location where the house of Jose Ruiz de Luzurriaga used to
stand. It was in this house that the surrender of Bacolod by Spanish authorities to the
Filipino forces of General Aniceto Lacson took place on November 6, 1898, during the
Negros Revolution.

Bacolod Public Plaza

 The Bacolod Public Plaza is one of the notable landmarks of Bacolod, the capital
of Negros Occidental, Philippines. It is located in the heart of the downtown area, near
the city hall and across from the San Sebastian Cathedral. The plaza is a trapezoidal park
with a belt of trees around the periphery and a gazebo at the center. Scattered within
the trees are four circular fountains.

The plaza was constructed in 1927 as a place for recreation, political, spiritual and
cultural activities. It is quite a popular site for outdoor picnics and concerts. The gazebo
is often used to house a bandstand.

Balay Negrense
The Balay Negrense was originally the ancestral house of Victor F. Gaston, a son
of Yves Leopold Germain Gaston and Prudencia Fernandez. The elder Gaston is credited
as one of the pioneers of sugarcane cultivation in this portion of the Philippine
archipelago. A native of Normandy in France, he married a Filipina from Batangas where
he initially began experimenting with sugar production before relocating to Negros.

Built in 1897, the structure housed Victor Gaston and his twelve children from
1901 until his death in 1927. Left unused by the family, the structure was abandoned in
the mid-1970s and fell into disrepair until a group of concerned Negrenses formed what
would later become the Negros Cultural Foundation and managed to acquire the house
from the heirs of Gaston through a donation. With donations from prominent
individuals and later the Department of Tourism, the structure was repaired and
furnished with period furniture and fixtures. The museum was officially inaugurated on
October 6, 1990.

Mariano Ramos Ancestral House

The Mariano Ramos Ancestral House is the home of the late Don Mariano V.
Ramos, the son of Agaton Ramos and Dolores Varela, was the first appointed Presidente
Municipal of Bacolod, Philippines. It was built in the 1930s and its architecture is a
combination of Castilian and Tuscan and has three storeys, including the tower room,
known as the torre.

During World War II, Don Mariano's Ancestral house was the most prominent
structure with a view over the whole city. The commanding Japanese general was
disguised as a family gardener. As the war broke, the Japanese seized the Mariano
Ramos Ancestral house in order to use it as a watchtower and as a headquarters.

San Diego Pro-cathedral

The San Diego Pro-cathedral, formerly known as the San Diego Parish Church or
the St. Didacus Parish Church before its declaration as a pro-cathedral in 1994, is an
early 20th-century church in Silay City, Negros Occidental in the Philippines. It is the only
pro-cathedral outside of the national capital of Manila, and is unique in Negros
Occidental for being the only church in the province featuring a cupola or dome.
 The Ruins
The mansion dates back to the 1900s when it was built by sugar baron Don
Mariano Ledesma Lacson for his first wife, Maria Braga, a Portuguese from Macau
whom he met in his vacations in Hong Kong. The mansion's structure is of Italianate
architecture enhanced by a belvedere complete with renaissance-type balustrading
typical of the homes of English ship captains. It was burned down in World War II to
prevent the Japanese from using it. It was opened to the public by descendants of the
original owner and is listed as among the World's 12 most fascinating ruins.

Paglaum Sports Complex

The Paglaum Sports Complex is a provincial-owned sports venue adjacent to the
Negros Occidental High School established during the 1970s that hosted various football
events, such as the 1991 Philippines International Cup and the football event of the
2005 Southeast Asian Games. It also hosted three editions of the Palarong Pambansa
(1971, 1974, 1979). However, the stadium became unfit to host football matches
following the erection of business establishments around the area. In 2012, a two-
hectare portion of the four-hectare complex was partitioned for the construction of the
Capitol-owned Negros First CyberCentre (NFCC) as an IT-BPO Outsourcing Hub. As of
2013, the provincial government has been proposing for a renovation of the stadium to
serve as alternative venue to Panaad Park and Sports Complex, particularly for football
competition. Recently, the Paglaum Sports Complex also serves as an alternative venue
to the Bacolod Public Plaza for the MassKara Festival celebration.

Negros Occidental Multi-Purpose Activity Center

The Negros Occidental Multi-Purpose Activity Center (NOMPAC) is a provincial-
owned multi-use gym located in Bacolod, adjacent to the Capitol Park and Lagoon. It is
currently used mostly for basketball, karatedo and boxing matches. Aside from the gym,
it also serves as evacuation site of the city and province during disasters and likewise
also serves as cultural facilities in many events and celebrations.

MEDIA
Modern communication facilities, as well as radio, television and newspapers, are
available in the province. Most are provided by dominant national players in the industry like
PLDT, Globe Telecom and their subsidiaries. For television and radio, the major providers are
network giants ABS-CBN, GMA Network, The 5 Network and CNN Philippines. Cable TV provides
access to BBC, ESPN and other international programs. National and international newspapers
are available on the same day of issue in Manila.

Bacolod is noted for being the home of the Negros Summer Workshops, founded by
multi-award-winning filmmaker and Negrense Peque Gallaga. Founded in 1991, Workshops has
long been training students from different parts of the country who wish to learn courses in
film-making, acting, writing, and more. Some of its alumni include actors in mainstream
Philippine show business.
 Negros Occidental has also been used as a setting and location shoot for various films
and television shows, most notable of which is the 1981 epic Oro, Plata, Mata where Hacienda
Rosalia is the setting. Recent films that were set and filmed in Negros are Ligaw Liham (2007),
Namets! (2008), and everyday I Love You (2015). There is one regional newscast program in
Bacolod: TV Patrol Negros (ABS-CBN Bacolod)

REPUBLIC ACT 8448

AN ACT SEPARATING THE ILOILO STATE COLLEGE OF FISHERIES IN SAGAY, NEGROS

OCCIDENTAL, FROM ILOILO STATE COLLEGE OF FISHERIES AND CONVERTING IT INTO AN
INDEPENDENT STATE COLLEGE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY TO BE KNOWN AS THE
NORTHERN NEGROS STATE COLLEGE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY, AND APPROPRIATING
FUNDS THEREFOR

Section 1. The Iloilo State College of Fisheries, hereinafter referred to as the College, in Sagay,
Negros Occidental, which is an extension of the Iloilo State College of Fisheries, is hereby
separated from the Iloilo State College of Fisheries and converted into an independent state
college of science and technology to be known as the Northern Negros State College of Science
and Technology.

Section 2. The State College shall primarily provide higher technological, professional and
vocational instruction and training in science, fishery, forestry, agriculture, engineering and
industrial fields, as well as short-term technical or vocational courses. It shall also promote
research, advanced studies, extension work and progressive leadership in its areas of
specialization.

The existing high school shall be transferred to the jurisdiction and supervision of the
Department of Education, Culture and Sports: provided, that this high school shall be allowed to
remain and operate within the campus of the College until it shall have been transferred to
another location, or until its students shall have been accommodated in other public or private
high schools: provided, further, that the College may operate a reasonably-sized laboratory
school if it has a college of education.

Section 3. In addition to its present curricular offerings, the State College shall offer
undergraduate courses in the fields of science, fishery, agriculture, education, forestry, marine
biology, engineering and other courses and fields of specialization as the Board of Trustees may
deem necessary. It shall likewise offer short-term technical or vocational courses, provide
nonformal education and undertake vigorous extension and research programs in food
production, nutrition, health and sports development.

Section 4. The College shall have the general powers of a corporation as set forth in the
corporation law. The administration of the College and the exercise of its corporate powers
shall be vested exclusively in the Board of Trustees and the president of the College insofar as
authorized by the Board.

Section 5. The governing body of the College shall be the Board of Trustees, hereinafter
referred to as the Board, which shall be composed of the following:

(a) The chairman of the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), chairman;

(b) The president of the College, vice-chairman;

(c) The chairman of the Committee on Education, Arts and Culture of the Senate, member;

(d) The chairman of the Committee on Education and Culture of the House of Representatives,
member;

(e) The Director-General of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA),
member;

(f) The president of the faculty association of the College, member;

(g) The president of the supreme student council of the College, member;

(h) The president of the alumni association of the College, member; and

(i) At least two (2) prominent citizens who have distinguished themselves in their professions or
fields of specialization of the College chosen from among a list of at least five (5) persons
qualified in the Province of Negros Occidental, as recommended by the search committee
constituted by the College president in consultation with the chairman of the CHED based on
the normal standards and qualifications for the position, members.

The chairman of the Commission on Higher Education, the president of the College, the
education committee chairmen of the Senate and the House, and the Director-General of the
National Economic and Development Authority shall have an ex officio term of office.

The term of office of the president of the faculty association, the federation of student councils
and, when deemed necessary, the president of the alumni association, shall be coterminous
with their term/terms of office.

The two (2) prominent citizens shall serve for a term of four (4) years and two (2) years,
respectively.

In case of vacancy in the office of the president, the officer-in-charge of the College designated
by the Board shall serve for the unexpired term only.
The president of the State College, whose term may be terminated according to this Act, shall
be entitled to full retirement benefits under existing laws.

Section 6. The Board shall promulgate and implement policies in accordance with the declared
policies on education and other pertinent provisions of the Philippine Constitution on
education, science and technology, arts, culture and sports (as well as the policies, standards
and thrusts of the CHED under Republic Act No. 7722).

Section 7. The Board shall have the following specific powers and duties in addition to its
general powers of administration and the exercise of all the powers granted to the board of
directors of a corporation under existing laws:

(a) To enact rules and regulations not contrary to law as may be necessary to carry out the
purposes and functions of the College;

(b) To receive and appropriate all sums as may be provided for the support of the College in the
manner it may, in its discretion, determine to carry out the purposes and functions of the
College;

(c) To import duty-free, subject to existing laws, essential commodities, materials and
equipment for educational or technological programs: provided, that such commodities,
materials, and equipment are not available locally at a comparable price;

(d) To receive in trust legacies, gifts and donations of real and personal properties of all kinds
and to administer and dispose the same when necessary for the benefit of the College and
subject to the limitations, directions and instructions of the donor, if any. Such donations shall
be exempt from all taxes and shall be considered as deductible items from the income tax of
the donor;

(e) To fix tuition fees and other necessary school charges such as, but not limited to,
matriculation fees, graduation fees, and laboratory fees, as the Board may deem proper to
impose;

(f) To authorize the construction or repair of its buildings, machineries, equipment, and other
facilities and the purchase and acquisition of real and personal properties, including necessary
supplies, materials and equipment;

(g) To confirm designations of vice-presidents, deans, directors, heads of departments and the
appointments of faculty members and other officials and employees of the State College made
by the president of the College;

(h) To fix and adjust the salaries of faculty members and administrative officials and employees
in accordance with the revised compensation and position classification system;
(i) To approve the curricula, institutional programs and rules of discipline drawn by the
administrative and academic councils as herein provided;

(j) To confer degrees upon successful candidates for graduation, to award honorary degrees
upon persons in recognition of their outstanding contributions in the fields of education, public
service, arts, science and technology, or in any field of specialization; and to authorize the
award of certificates for completion of non-degree and non-traditional courses;

(k) To establish chairs in the College and to provide fellowships for qualified faculty members
and scholarships to deserving students; and

(l) To establish branches in the Province of Negros Occidental, if and when it becomes essential
and necessary, where there is no existing school offering similar programs or courses, to
promote and carry out equal access to educational opportunities as mandated by the
Constitution.

Section 8. The Board of Trustees shall convene regularly at least once every two (2) months.
However, the chairman of the Board of Trustees may, upon three (3) days prior written notice,
call a special meeting whenever necessary.

A quorum of the Board shall consist of a majority of all members holding office at the time of
the meeting: provided, however, that the chairman of the CHED, who is the chairman of the
Board or the president of the State College is among those present in the meeting.

In the absence of the chairman of the CHED, a commissioner of the CHED, duly designated by
him, shall represent him in the meeting with all the rights and responsibilities of a regular
member and of a presiding officer.

A senator, preferably coming from the region or province where the school is located, shall
automatically represent the chairman of the Senate Committee on Education, Arts and Culture,
when he is unable to attend, with all the rights, privileges and responsibilities of a regular
member.

The representative of the House coming from the district where the school is located, shall
automatically represent the chairman of the House Committee on Education and Culture, when
he is unable to attend, with all the rights, privileges and responsibilities of a regular member:
provided, that in the case of a multi-campus school located in a multi-district province, any of
the representatives where the campus is located may represent the chairman.

In the absence of the Director-General of the NEDA, the regional director where the school is
located, shall represent him.
The members of the Board shall not receive any salary but shall be entitled to honoraria and
reimbursements for actual and necessary expenses incurred either in their attendance to
meetings of the Board or for other official business as authorized by resolution of the Board,
subject to existing laws on honoraria and allowances.

Section 9. The State College shall be headed by a president to be appointed by the Board upon
the recommendation of a duly constituted search committee, and shall hold office for a term of
three (3) years extendible only for another three (3) years unless he reaches the age of
retirement or earlier removed for cause or becomes incapacitated to discharge the duties of
the office.

In case of vacancy in the office of the president by reason of death, resignation, incapacity of
the president to perform the functions of his office, or removal for cause, the Board shall have
the authority to designate an officer-in-charge of the College pending the appointment of a
successor.

The powers and duties of the president of the State College in addition to those specifically
provided in this Act, shall be those usually pertaining to the office of the president of similar
colleges.

The salary of the president of the State College shall be subject to the revised compensation
and position classification system and shall be comparable to that being received by the
presidents of similar educational institutions of like enrollment and standing.

Section 10. There shall be an administrative council consisting of the president of the College as
chairman, the vice-president(s), deans, directors and other officials of equal rank whose duty is
to implement the policies governing the administration, management and development
planning of the College, as approved by the Board.

Section 11. There shall be an academic council with the president of the College as chairman,
and all members of the instructional staff with the rank of not lower than assistant professor, as
members. The academic council shall have the power to prescribe curricular offerings subject to
the approval of the Board. It shall fix the requirements for the admission to the College, as well
as for graduation and the conferring of degrees, subject to review and/or approval by the Board
through the president of the College. It shall also have disciplinary powers over the students
through the president within the limits prescribed by the rules of discipline, as approved by the
Board.

Section 12. There shall be a secretary of the College who shall be appointed by the Board upon
recommendation of the president of the College. He shall also be the secretary of the Board
and shall keep such records of the College as may be determined by the Board.

Section 13. The Treasurer of the Republic of the Philippines shall be the ex officio treasurer of
the College.
Section 14. No religious opinion or affiliation shall be the matter of inquiry in the appointment
of faculty members of the College: provided, however, that no member of the faculty shall
teach for or against any particular church or religious sect.

Section 15. No student shall be denied admission to the College by reason of sex, nationality,
religion, or political affiliation.

Section 16. No member of the faculty of the College shall attempt directly or indirectly, under
penalty of dismissal by the Board of Trustees, to influence students or any person in the College
towards any ideology, political or otherwise, which agitates the throw of the duly constituted
government.

Section 17. The appointment of the officer-in-charge of the College pending the appointment of
the president by the Board upon its composition shall be made by the CHED.

Section 18. On or before the fifteenth (15th) day of the second month after the opening of the
regular classes each year, the Board shall file with the Office of the President of the Philippines,
through the chairperson of the CHED and to both Houses of Congress, a detailed report on the
progress, conditions and needs of the College.

Section 19. All the assets, fixed and movable, personnel records and facilities of the Iloilo State
College of Fisheries in Sagay, Negros Occidental, as well as liabilities or obligations, are hereby
transferred to the Northern Negros State College of Science and Technology: provided,
however, that the positions, rights and security of tenure of personnel therein employed under
existing laws prior to absorption by the State College are not impaired: provided, further, that
the incumbents of the positions shall remain in the same status until otherwise provided for by
the Board. All parcels of land belonging to the government occupied by the Iloilo State College
of Fisheries in the said extension campus are hereby declared the property of the Northern
Negros State College of Science and Technology and shall be titled under the name: provided,
furthermore, that should the State College cease to exist or be abolished or such parcels of land
aforementioned be no longer needed by the State College, the same shall revert back to the
Province of Negros Occidental.

Section 20. All accounts and expenses of the College shall be audited by the Commission on
Audit or its duly authorized representative.

Section 21. The heads of bureaus and offices of the national government are hereby authorized
to loan or transfer, upon request of the president of the College, such apparatus, equipment or
supplies as may be needed by the College and to detail employees for duty therein when, in the
judgment of the bureau or office, such apparatus, equipment, supplies or services of such
employees can be spared without serious detriment to the public service. Employees so
detailed shall perform such duties as required of them by the president of the College and the
time so employed shall be counted as part of their regular services.
Section 22. It shall be the continuing policy of the State College to accept the affiliation and/or
integration within its operation of any existing national school whose programs can contribute
largely and effectively to the attainment of its objectives.

Section 23. The CHED shall extend institutional development assistance to the State College
specifically in the areas of faculty and facility development.

Section 24. The Sagay Marine Reserve covering the islands of Molocaboc, Diutay, Matabas, and
Suyac, as well as their surrounding reefs and the reefs of Carbin and Maca, situated in the City
of Sagay, Province of Negros Occidental, declared as marine protected area by virtue of
Proclamation No. 592, may be utilized by the College for their research, experimental and
laboratory purposes.

Section 25. The amount necessary for the implementation of this Act shall be charged against
the current year’s appropriations of the Iloilo State College of Fisheries, except the sum needed
to continue the operations of the existing high school. Thereafter, such sums as may be
necessary for the continued operation and maintenance of the Northern Negros State College
of Science and Technology shall be included in the annual General Appropriations Act.

Section 26. All laws, presidential decrees, executive orders, rules and regulations contrary to or
inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby repealed, amended or modified
accordingly.

Section 27. This Act shall take effect upon its approval.

Approved: January 9, 1998

HISTORY OF SAGAY CITY

Sagay can be identified in the map of Negros Occidental
because of its "ice-cream cone" shape sliced from the northern tip of
Negros. It is bounded in the north by Asuncion Pass and th e Visayan
Sea; the city of Talisay, the municipality of Calatrava in the south;
cities of Cadiz and Silay in the west and the city of Escalante and
municipality of Toboso in the east.

DURING SPANISH ERA

Sagay was originally called Argüelles when Lt. Francisco
Rodríguez and Basilio Córdova founded it in 1860 in the mouth of the
Bulanon River. Later, by the order of the Spanish governor the town
was transferred to Pueblo de Magallanes (now known as Old Sagay)
in honor of Ferdinand Magellan.
 Having the status of a pueblo, Sagay was entitled to have a Capitán Del Pueblo, the
highest town official during the time. The first to be appointed to this position by the Spanish
Governor was Eulalio Rodríguez. Gregorio Parreño, then Pedro Catalbás y Villanueva, later
succeeded him.

During the Philippine Revolution, Sagay contributed its share to what proved to be a
successful national struggle for independence. The hard-won First Philippine Republic was
however short-lived when the country passed to the hands of another colonial power, the
United States of America in 1898.

THE AMERICAN PERIOD

In 1906, during the administration of the second President Benjie Adolfo, the name of
the town was officially changed to Sagay. The name was taken from the semi-spherical shell
called "sigay", which can be found in the area. The American influence seeped into every aspect
of Sagay's life, politically and culturally. At this period of Sagay's history, land transportation
began to supplant sea travel, but the seaside community continued to flourish. The first public
schools conducted in English were established. Mr. Cornelio Pascual, Sr. was the first English
Teacher assigned in Vito. American missionaries were sent to tutor more Filipino English
teachers.

Meanwhile, sometime in 1907, the Insular Lumber Company, reputed to be the biggest
hardwood lumber mill in the world, was established in what is now called Barangay Fabrica.
Though measures to prevent the destruction of Sagay's rich forest were made, reforestation
programs failed. Later, the old forest areas were converted mostly into sugarcane fields and
some into cornfields. With the exhaustion of the forest resources of Sagay, the ILCO –
Philippines was phased out in 1975 and later transferred to Hinoba-an.

A major industrial development gave Sagay another big step forward: the establishment
of Lopez Sugar Corporation in the 1920s. Also during these years, sugar, copra, lumber and
fishing became the important source of income for the inhabitants. The economic growth of
Sagay brought about influx of migrants from Iloilo, Guimaras, Cebu and Bohol. This trend made
Sagay a melting pot of ethnically-different but equally-hardworking Cebuanos and Ilonggos.
With these developments, business and industry flourished. Leading both sectors were big
businessmen and industrialists like the Lopezes, the Cuaycongs, the Jisons, the Gamboas, and
the Vasquezes. The sugar boom brought the "old families" into the industry like the Pueys, the
Nichols, the Katalbases, and the Tupases, which branched out to the Marañons, the de la Pazes,
the Ibrados and the Libo-ons.
WORLD WAR II
During the Japanese occupation, two Civil Governments existed in Sagay. Under the
Japanese national government of Jose Laurel, Sr., Vicente Katalbas was appointed mayor, while
the resistance government of the province, headed by Alfredo Montelibano, Sr. as governor,
appointed Tomas Londres as Mayor whose seat of government was in the mountain areas of
Sitio Balibag, Lopez Jaena. Their term however, abruptly ended when the combined Filipino and
American forces liberated the province from the Japanese at the early part of 1945. When
Sergio Osmeña, Sr., as vice-president to Manuel L. Quezon who died during the war, took over
the helm of the national government, Teodoro Lopez, Sr. was appointed Mayor of Sagay. During
his short term, Teodoro Lopez, Sr. concentrated in rebuilding the administrative machinery of
the local government.

Several hundreds of thousands of Filipino soldiers and officers of the 7th, 72nd and 75th
Infantry Division of the Philippine Commonwealth Army and the 7th Constabulary Regiment of
the Philippine Constabulary liberated and re-occupied the town of Sagay by attacking and
driving off Japanese troops in 1945.

The factories were destroyed and the economy was in shambles. A Eusebio Lopez
Memorial School Building in Barangay Paraiso served as the incarceration area for captured
Filipino soldiers and American pilots and soldiers. It also served as the headquarters of Fourth
Flight Division of the Japanese Imperial Air Force whose airfield was located in Pula-Bunglas
area in Barangay Malubon. During the last days of the war, the Fourth Flight Division of the
Japanese Imperial Airforce organized kamikaze or suicide units to be stationed here and in
Bacolod. Known later as the Third Regiment Suicide Corps, it was headed by Major Tsuneharu
Sirai with Capt. Tetsuzu Kimura as his Chief Staff Officer. Of its 59 pilots and crews, 30 were
killed in the Battle of Leyte Gulf which they played a major role as kamikaze pilots. The Pula –
Bunglas area of Barangay Malubon served as the Japanese landing field for the Fourth Flight
Division. It was also a site where the local soldiers, guerrillas and civilians, after Japanese spies
identified them as guerrilla members or collaborators, were forced to dig holes and
consequently executed and buried. Old residents believe that almost 1,542 people were buried
here.

Barrio 3 Wharf, Fabrica served as the transport point of processed lumber destined to
Japan from Insular Lumber Company and also a docking area of Japanese supply ship during the
war-torn years. The Iglanggam Bridge at Barangay Tadlong served as the dumping site of
executed local soldiers, guerrillas and civilians. This is also known as the site where confiscated
money, especially silver Peso coins encased in concrete blocks, were dumped by the retreating
Japanese soldiers.

Balibag Hill, Lopez Jaena was the place where the set of resistance government of Free
Sagay under Mayor Tomas Londres (appointed by Island Governor Alfredo Montelibano, Sr.)
was established. It was also known as tabo-an or market place during the war and in 1944, a
group of Japanese soldiers killed about 27 homeguards or "toltog" guerrillas. After the mass
killing, the Japanese soldiers set the whole area on fire, burning the shanties and the dead. The
Japanese "puppet" government under Vicente Lacson Katalbas was established at the Big
House, Central Lopez, Paraiso. A Japanese barracks and checkpoint was established. A Japanese
anti-aircraft still can be found inside the ground of the house. At Barangay Poblacion II,
Japanese zero fighters left bullet holes when they intended to destroy the water supply of the
people during the last days of the war. Holes from 60mm machine-guns left an indelible mark
on the water tank.
 A training site of USAFFE (United States Army Forces in the Far East), under the
supervision of Lt. Dominador Gaerland, was established at Tangnonon, Barangay Fabrica at the
ancestral home of Lopez Kabayao. On July 26, 1942, President Franklin D. Roosevelt of the
United States of America ordered a national mobilization in the Philippines and on August 23,
1942, the first group of reservist in Negros were called on duty by virtue of Philippine Army HQ
order of August 4 and they were trained here. The first group reported in the said mobilization
camp constituted the 71st Infantry Regiment.

POST WAR PERIOD

The first election held right after the Second World War made Jose B. Puey, Sr. and
Amalio Cueva, Sr. Mayor and Vice Mayor respectively. However, shortly after, Mayor Jose B.
Puey, Sr. was appointed member of the Provincial Board of Negros Occidental thus Vice Mayor
Amalio Cueva, Sr. took over the Municipal leadership and through his initiative, the seat of
government was transferred to its present site, Dalusan. Incidentally, the transfer signaled the
diminishing importance of sea travel and the takeover of overland transportation as the
conveyor of progress and development. Old Sagay (the previous seat of government) is an old
coastal center of population while Dalusan is a late highway occurrence. The transfer was made
possible partly through land donations for the town site by Doña Rosario Cooper and the heirs
of the late Clayton Nichols. Schools, markets and commercial establishments were soon
established. Jose B. Puey, Sr. remained Provincial Board Member until his election as
congressman for the first District of Negros Occidental in 1953.

In the late 1950s, two Sagaynon politicians were in the forefront of Negros politics, Jose
B. Puey, Sr. (Congressman from 1953 to 1957) and Alfredo E. Marañon, Sr. (Board Member
from 1956 to 1959). This meant that provincial and national aid were extended to Sagay. More
roads and school buildings were constructed, thousands of hectares of logged off area of the
Insular Lumber Company were planted with coconut trees and sugarcane. Sherman Hill, near
Barangay Bato was discovered to contain rich deposits of the highest silica. The growing
markets for sea products brought about unprecedented boom in the fishing industry for which
the coastal waters of Sagay proved to equal the demand. The municipal population rose to
more than 60,000 and the revenue increased. After Mayor Amalio Cueva, came Tereso Canoy,
Bruno Cueva, Sr. and Quintin Katalbas.

In 1963, Jose H. Puey, Jr. was elected mayor of Sagay. The income continued to rise.
More schools were built and more roads, linking the barangays to the town capital, were
constructed. The inefficient electrical system was updated, fire fighting equipment and the
police units were modernized. It was during this time that Alfredo Marañon Sr. began
entertaining the idea of putting up another sugar mill in Sagay which farmers can partly own.
He campaigned for support, but there was too much opposition even from some of his close
friends. Nevertheless, his idea became a reality when in 1967, shortly after his death, Sagay
Central Inc. was born. Mr. Marañon's dream was made real through the help of President
Ferdinand E. Marcos and the then Philippine National Bank President Roberto S. Benedicto who
both shared his vision for Sagay. With the new sugar mill at Barangay Bato, new areas were
opened and planted with sugarcane. Today the new sugar mill factory is benefiting hundreds of
small farmers.

The then Mayor, Congressman and Governor of Negros Occidental Alfredo G. Marañon,
Jr. assumed the political leadership of Sagay in 1972. Under his administration, Sagay acquired a
new town hall, a municipal gymnasium, a livestock auction market, public markets for a number
of barangays and municipal wharves in barangays Vito and Old Sagay. He caused the
organization of Sagay Water District in 1978. He effected the purchase of a municipal
subdivision for the municipal employees in 1979. These achievements by themselves have
helped make Sagay a first-class C municipality (the highest in the entire Negros). The then
Mayor Alfredo G. Marañon, Jr.'s successful negotiation of the sponsorship contract with the
German District of Osterholz is his most important achievement.

THE CONVERSION INTO A CITY

It had been a long time aspiration to get Sagay city status. The leadership of Mayor
Joseph G. Marañon and Vice Mayor Fortunato S. Javelosa inspired the authorship of
Congressman Alfredo G. Marañon of House Bill No. 6543, "An Act Converting the Municipality
of Sagay into a component city of Negros Occidental" during the 10th Congress. Passing
through the legislation process, a public hearing was held in Sagay City on February 22, 1996.
On May 3, 1996, Sen. Raul Roco sponsored the Senate Bill No. 1191, the Senate version of the
cityhood. On June 11, 1996, then President Fidel V. Ramos signed into law RA8192, now the
charter of Sagay City. On June 10, 1996, the residents voted and ratified RA8192 and made
Sagay, officially Sagay City.

THE CULTURAL FEATURES OF NEGROS OCCIDENTAL.

Negros Occidental faces the island-province of Guimaras and the province of Iloilo on
Panay Island to the northwest across the Panay Gulf and the Guimaras Strait. The primary
spoken language is Hiligaynon and the predominant religious denomination is Roman
Catholicism. Bacolod is the capital, seat of government and the most populous city of the
province, but is governed independently as a highly urbanized city. With a population of
2,497,261 inhabitants, it is the most populated province in Western Visayas, the second most-
populous province in the Visayas after Cebu and the 8th most-populous province of the
Philippines.

GEOGRAPHY
Negros Occidental is located in the western side of Negros Island, the fourth largest
island in the Philippines, with a total land area of 7,802.54 square kilometres (3,012.58 sq mi). If
Bacolod is included for geographical purposes, the province has an area of 7,965.21 square
kilometres (3,075.38 sq mi). The province is approximately 375 kilometres (233 mi) long from
north to south. It is bounded by the Visayan Sea in the north, Panay Gulf on the west, Negros
Oriental province and Tañon Strait on the east and Sulu Sea on the south. Negros is basically
volcanic, making its soil ideal for agriculture. Eighty percent of all arable land in the island
region is cultivated.
 The north and western parts of the province are largely composed of plains and gentle
slopes. A mountain range lines the eastern part of the province, forming the basis of the border
with Negros Oriental. Kanlaon Volcano, which is partially located in Negros Oriental, rises to a
height of 2,465 m (8,087 ft) and is the highest peak in the Visayas.

ADMINISTRATIVE DIVISIONS
Negros Occidental comprises 19 municipalities and 13 cities, further subdivided into 662
barangays. It has the most chartered cities among all the provinces in the Philippines. Although
Bacolod serves as the capital, it is governed independently from the province as a highly
urbanized city.

DEMOGRAPHICS
The population of Negros Occidental in the 2015 census was 2,497,261 people, with a
density of 320 inhabitants per square kilometre or 830 inhabitants per square mile. If Bacolod is
included for geographical and statistical purposes, the total population is 3,059,136 people,
with a density of 384/km2 (995/sq mi).

Residents of Negros are called "Negrenses" (and less often "Negrosanons") and many
are of either pure/mixed Austronesian heritage, with foreign ancestry (i.e. Chinese and/or
Spanish) as minorities. Negros Occidental is predominantly a Hiligaynon-speaking province with
84% of residents speaking it as a first language, because of its linguistic ties with Iloilo. Cebuano
is spoken by the remaining 16%, especially in the cities and towns facing the Tañon Strait, due
to their proximity to the island-province of Cebu. A mixture of Hiligaynon and Cebuano is
spoken in Sagay and surrounding places, which both face Iloilo and Cebu. Filipino and English
are widely spoken and used on both sides of the island for educational, literary and official
purposes.

Negros Occidental is the second most-populous province in the Visayas after Cebu,
having the second largest number of congressional districts and the 7th most-populous (4th if
highly urbanized cities and independent component cities are included in the population of
corresponding provinces) in the Philippines based on the 2015 Census. As of 2010, the
population of registered voters are 1,478,260.
RELIGION
Catholicism is the predominant religion, with over 2 million adherents. Negros
Occidental falls under the jurisdictions of the Roman Catholic Dioceses of Bacolod, San Carlos &
Kabankalan. Other major Christian denominations include Baptist churches, Aglipayan Church,
Iglesia ni Cristo, Seventh-day Adventist Church, and Evangelicalism. Islam is adhered by a
sizeable minority, with 1,842 claiming it as their religion.

ECONOMY
Known as the "Sugarbowl of the Philippines", the sugar industry is the lifeblood of the
economy of Negros Occidental, producing more than half of the country's sugar. There are 15
sugar centrals located throughout the lowland areas the north and west of the island,
stretching from northwest along the coasts of the Visayan Sea and Guimaras Strait. Among the
larger mills are in San Carlos, La Carlota, Bago, Binalbagan, Kabankalan, Sagay, Silay, Murcia and
Victorias. Victorias Mill in Victorias City is the largest sugar mill in the country, and the world's
largest integrated sugar mill and refinery. Sugar is transported from plantations to refineries by
large trucks that use the national highway.

A fishing industry is found in Cadiz City, and other fishponds that dot the province. One
of the country's largest copper mines is located in Sipalay City. There also exists a cottage
industry which produced handicrafts made from indigenous materials.

The province is rich in mineral deposits. Minerals that abound in the province are
primary copper with estimated reserve of 591 million metric tons and gold ore with estimated
reserve of 25 million tons. Silver and molybdenum deposits are also abundant, as well as non-
metallic minerals suitable for agricultural and industrial uses. Notwithstanding its great
potential, the mining industry in Negros Occidental has remained virtually dormant since the
biggest copper mine in Sipalay suspended its operation in the year 2000.
Bacolod is the center of commerce and finance in Negros Occidental. It has oil
companies, factories, bottling plants, allied industrial businesses, steel fabrication, power
generation, agri-businesses, prawn culture and other aqua-culture ventures. It is also the
Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) hub of the Negros Island Region of the Philippines. Bacolod
has an estimated 35,000 workforce in the IT-BPO industry working in 20 major companies.
Among the notable BPO companies operating in the city are Convergys, Teleperformance, TTEC,
Focus Direct International, Inc. – Bacolod, Panasiatic Solutions, Ubiquity Global Services,
Transcom Asia and iQor. As of 2019, Negros Occidental has a total of 13 operating PEZA-
registered IT Parks and Centers.

In 2012, a two-hectare portion of the four-hectare Paglaum Sports Complex was

partitioned for the construction of the provincial government-owned Negros First CyberCentre
(NFCC) as an IT-BPO Outsourcing Hub with a budget of P674-million. It is located at Lacson
corner Hernaez Streets in Bacolod and offers up to 22,000 square meters of mixed IT-BPO and
commercial spaces. Its facilities are divided into three sections — Information Technology,
Commercial Support Facilities, and Common IT Facilities. It was inaugurated in April 2015 in
rites led by President Benigno S. Aquino III.[30] The area was initially a residential zone and has
been reclassified as a commercial zone as approved by the Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance.
By 2014, Negros Occidental is the province with the highest income in all of the Philippines,
earning an average of P3.332 billion.

FOOD AND AGRICULTURE

Negros Occidental's output of more than 1 million metric tons for crop year 2002–2003
accounts for nearly half of the country's sugar production in an industry that generates an
estimated annual revenue of more than ₱18 billion. There are 12 sugar mills in the province, of
which only 10 are presently operational. Victorias Milling Company has the highest rated
capacity with 15,000 tonnes cane per day.
However, the volatility of the sugar industry forced the province to shift, albeit slowly, to
other high-value crops and alternative industries. The diversification has proven to be highly
successful. Production of rice, the basic commodity for food security, has been increasing. By
2003, annual output of 437 thousand metric tons of palay was 33% better than two years ago.
This allowed the province to significantly raise its sufficiency level from 65% to more than 84%.
The improvement could be attributed to the introduction and promotion of hybrid rice, which
increased rice yields to 3.8 metric tons per hectare. Because of the success of the program, area
planted to hybrid rice has increased nearly fivefold. The highest hybrid yield was recorded at
10.3 tons per hectare.

Corn also registered increasing gains. Production for 2003 of 42 thousand metric tons
outperformed 2001 output by 18%. Average yield per hectare has also grown by 18%. Other
fruit and vegetable crops, except for banana and cassava, likewise improved their harvest.
Harvested coconut was placed at 139 million nuts, while production of banana; fruit and
vegetable crops totaled 110 million kilograms. Livestock and poultry are industries where
Negros Occidental has strongly diversified.

With the province successfully quarantined from the foot and mouth disease and bird
flu, as well as with other endemic diseases under control, total production of livestock and
poultry in 2003 of 49 thousand metric tons exceeded estimated local demand by 18%. Fishing is
likewise an industry where the province has remained focused. After all, 9 of its cities and 16 of
its municipalities are located along the coastline and a great portion of the population depends
on fishing for their livelihood.

The area for exploitation by this industry is huge, covering most of the coastal areas and
the rich fishing grounds of the Visayan Sea on the north, Sulu Sea on the south, Tañon Strait on
the east and Guimaras Strait and Panay Gulf at the west. These rich coastal areas and fishing
grounds continue to be generous to the people of Negros Occidental. In 2003, products from
deep-sea fishing, municipal marine and inland waters, and aquaculture reached 87 thousand
metric tons, 30% better than 2001 production.

CULTURE AND ARTS

Negros Occidental has long been a center of culture and arts; the wealth brought about
by the sugar industry made sure that the Negrense principalía enjoyed an above-average
standard of living.

Silay City, to the north of the capital of Bacolod, nicknamed the "Paris of Negros", is the
cultural and artistic center of Negros Island Region. It has 30 heritage houses declared by the
national historical institute, most notable of which is Balay Negrense; it is also the hometown of
National Artist of the Philippines for Architecture Leandro Locsin and international mezzo-
soprano Conchita Gaston. This blossoming in art was due to the economical importance of the
area during the Spanish era, Negros became probably the most hispanized and pro-Spanish
area, due to the enormous investments of Spain in the sugar business.

Another famous treasure of Negrense art heritage can be found in Victorias City, within
the confines of the Victorias Milling Company in its chapel is the world-famous mural of the
Angry Christ, painted by artist Alfonso Ossorio, a scion of the Ossorio family who owned the
mill. The Negrenses' joie de vivre is manifest in the various festivals all over the province,
foremost being the famous MassKara Festival of Bacolod, Pasalamat Festival of La Carlota,
Bailes de Luces of La Castellana and Pintaflores Festival of San Carlos. These and other local
festivals are featured during the Pana-ad sa Negros Festival staged every April at the 25-hectare
tree-lined Panaad Stadium in Bacolod. Dubbed as the "Festival of Festivals", Pana-ad brings
together the 13 cities and 19 towns in a showcase of history, arts and culture, tourism, trade,
commerce and industry, beauty and talent as well as games and sports.

Negros Occidental is rich in structures and buildings that are remnants of a once affluent
lifestyle. The Palacio Episcopal (1930), San Sebastian Cathedral (1876), and the Capitol Building
(1931) are popular landmarks. In most towns, steam locomotives that used to cart sugarcane
from the fields to refineries attract steam-engine enthusiasts from all over the world. There are
also impressive churches all over the province, both built recently and during the Spanish era.

FESTIVALS
The Panaad sa Negros Festival, also called simply as the Panaad Festival (sometimes
spelled as Pana-ad), is a festival held annually during the month of April in Bacolod, the capital
of Negros Occidental province in the Philippines. Panaad is the Hiligaynon word for "vow" or
"promise"; the festival is a form of thanksgiving to Divine Providence and commemoration of a
vow in exchange for a good life. The celebration is held at the Panaad Park, which also houses
the Panaad Stadium, and is participated in by the 13 cities and 19 towns of the province. For
this reason, the province dubs it the "mother" of all its festivals.

The first Panaad sa Negros Festival was held at Capitol Park and Lagoon in a three-day
affair in 1993 that started April 30. The festival was held at the lagoon fronting the Provincial
Capitol for the first four years. As the festival grew each year, it became necessary to locate a
more spacious venue. In 1997, the festival was held at the reclaimed area near where the
Bredco Port is located today. The construction of the Panaad Stadium and sports complex
paved the way for the establishment of the Panaad Park as the permanent home of the festival.

INFRASTRUCTURE
Through its capital, Bacolod, Negros Occidental is only 50 minutes from Manila and 30
minutes from Cebu by air. By sea, it is an 18-hour cruise from Manila and an hour by fast ferries
from Iloilo. It is also accessible by sea and land trip from Cebu via Escalante City, San Carlos City
and Dumaguete City in Negros Oriental. Travel from Bacolod to Dumaguete is only 5 to 6 hours
by land. Seven airline companies, including Philippine Airlines, Cebu Pacific and Air Philippines,
serve the province. Four inter-island shipping lines call on nine seaports of Negros Occidental.

Bacolod-Silay International Airport

On January 18, 2008, the new airport was inaugurated in Silay City, 16 kilometers
north of Bacolod. The new airport replaced the Bacolod Domestic Airport. The new
airport runway is of international standards and was constructed to facilitate future
landings of international flights to serve the growing number of tourists visiting Negros
Occidental each year.

Kabankalan City Domestic Airport

A new airport designed to serve the general area of Kabankalan City. The airport
would be the second airport in Negros Occidental, after the Bacolod-Silay International
Airport and the third airport on Negros Island Region. It is located four kilometers
northeast of Kabankalan City proper on a 100-hectare site in Barangay Hilamonan.
Completion of the airport is still undergoing.

Sipalay Airport
On August 3, 2017, Air Juan started to open flights to Sipalay City from Cebu and
Iloilo. Flights from Cebu to Sipalay will be every Wednesday while Sipalay to Cebu on
Sundays; Iloilo to Sipalay on Mondays and return on Thursdays. Sipalay Mayor Oscar C.
Montilla, Jr. had been looking forward to having an airline company operate in the city
to boost tourism. The small Sipalay airport with a 1,400-meter runway is located in a 10-
hectare property of the local government. Negros Occidental Governor Alfredo G.
Marañon, Jr. has committed to support the planned concreting of the runway.

Road network and accommodations

All cities and municipalities are linked by an extensive road and bridge network
stretching more than 1,500 kilometers crisscrossing the province with seven alternative
scenic routes to the nearby province of Negros Oriental. Within the province, travel is
also easy, comfortable and even enjoyable with air-conditioned and non-aircon buses or
metered taxis. Car rental services are also available. However, the jeepney is still the
most common means of transport among the towns and cities. For accommodations,
visitors may choose from a wide range of about 67 hotels, pension and lodging houses
and tourist inns. The better known hotels are L’ Fisher, Bacolod Convention Plaza,
Pagcor Hotel, and Business Inn, Sugarland Hotel, all in Bacolod.

Energy and water

The province has adequate power and water supplies. It is currently
interconnected to the Visayas Power Grid whose main sources of power are
geothermal. Aside from its existing 170 megawatts capacity, Negros Island by the year
2006 has an additional 105 megawatts of locally produced power from geothermal
plants in Bago and in barangay Palinpinon, Valencia, Negros Oriental, and from bagasse
co-generation facility of First Farmers Sugar Mill. Ample water supply for household,
commercial, industrial and agricultural uses is assured by 73 thousand hectares of
proclaimed and protected major watersheds, regular rainfall and six major river
systems.

San Carlos City is going to play a major role in renewable energy as it will be the site of
San Carlos Solar Energy INC. It is a solar farm with an initial capacity of 13 MW in Phase
1, and a provision for an addition of 7 MW in Phase 2. It is intended to provide power to
 the grid throughout the year, at pre-determined Feed-In-Tariff rates set by the ERC. It is
a DOE approved stand-alone solar power plant consisting of approximately 52,000
modules.

Communications and medical facilities

International direct dialing, fiber optic data lines and internet services are
accessible in most areas of the province. Also, GSM, digital and analog cellular networks
provide good coverage in Bacolod and other areas, including international roaming. The
medical and health care needs of the people of Negros Occidental and its guests are
presently being met by 20 government hospitals and 10 private hospitals, as well as
several city and municipal health centers, barangay health stations and day-care
centers. Doctors, nurses and other medical personnel serving these facilities are not
only competent but also very caring towards their patients.

Banking, finance and accessibility

Banking and finance is likewise a thriving industry in Negros Occidental.
According to the latest count, there are 389 financial institutions competing for
businesses in the province. 149 of these are banks. Negros Occidental offers several
advantages for those who are doing business in the province. It is strategically located
near Metro Manila, Metro Cebu and Metro Davao, all major international gateways with
maximum travel time of only about 4 hours between the Philippines and its neighbors in
Southeast Asia. It is equipped with major infrastructure facilities for easy travel and
shipment of goods within and outside of Negros.

It has information and communication facilities with connection capabilities necessary

for, among others, call center operations for business communication and transmission
of data. The province has abundant water supply and dependable power supply.
Modern health care facilities with medical services are available, as well as academic
institutions.

LANDMARKS

Panaad Park and Sports Complex

The Panaad Park and Sports Complex houses the Panaad Stadium which is a
multi-purpose stadium in the province. It is currently used mostly for football matches,
and was used for the 2005 South East Asian Games. It was the venue of the pre-
qualifiers of the 2007 ASEAN Football Championship or ASEAN Cup, in which the
Philippines, Cambodia, Timor Leste, Brunei and Laos participated. The stadium has a
seating capacity of 15,500, but holds around 20,000 people with standing areas. It is
unofficially designated as the home stadium of the Philippines national football team.
Aside from the association football field, it also has a rubberized track oval, an Olympic-
size swimming pool and other sports facilities.
 The stadium is also the home of Panaad sa Negros Festival, a week-long
celebration participated in by all cities and municipalities in the province held annually
every summer. The festival is highlighted by merry-making and field demonstrations at
the stadium. The stadium itself features replicas of the landmarks of the 13 cities and
municipalities of Negros Occidental.

Capitol Park and Lagoon

The Capitol Park and Lagoon is a provincial park located right in the heart of
Bacolod, Negros Occidental, in the Philippines. One of the landmarks of the park is the
statue of a carabao (water buffalo) being pulled by a woman. This statue is located at
the northern end of the lagoon. On the other end, there is also another carabao
sculpture but the figure is being pulled by a man.

Local everyday activities in the park include jogging, aerobics, school dance rehearsals,
promenaders, arnisadors, and martial arts practitioners.

Fountain of Justice
The Fountain of Justice is a historic landmark in Bacolod, Negros Occidental,
Philippines. It marks the location where the house of Jose Ruiz de Luzurriaga used to
stand. It was in this house that the surrender of Bacolod by Spanish authorities to the
Filipino forces of General Aniceto Lacson took place on November 6, 1898, during the
Negros Revolution.

Bacolod Public Plaza

The Bacolod Public Plaza is one of the notable landmarks of Bacolod, the capital
of Negros Occidental, Philippines. It is located in the heart of the downtown area, near
the city hall and across from the San Sebastian Cathedral. The plaza is a trapezoidal park
with a belt of trees around the periphery and a gazebo at the center. Scattered within
the trees are four circular fountains.

The plaza was constructed in 1927 as a place for recreation, political, spiritual and
cultural activities. It is quite a popular site for outdoor picnics and concerts. The gazebo
is often used to house a bandstand.

Balay Negrense
The Balay Negrense was originally the ancestral house of Victor F. Gaston, a son
of Yves Leopold Germain Gaston and Prudencia Fernandez. The elder Gaston is credited
as one of the pioneers of sugarcane cultivation in this portion of the Philippine
archipelago. A native of Normandy in France, he married a Filipina from Batangas where
he initially began experimenting with sugar production before relocating to Negros.

Built in 1897, the structure housed Victor Gaston and his twelve children from
1901 until his death in 1927. Left unused by the family, the structure was abandoned in
the mid-1970s and fell into disrepair until a group of concerned Negrenses formed what
would later become the Negros Cultural Foundation and managed to acquire the house
from the heirs of Gaston through a donation. With donations from prominent
individuals and later the Department of Tourism, the structure was repaired and
furnished with period furniture and fixtures. The museum was officially inaugurated on
October 6, 1990.

Mariano Ramos Ancestral House

The Mariano Ramos Ancestral House is the home of the late Don Mariano V.
Ramos, the son of Agaton Ramos and Dolores Varela, was the first appointed Presidente
Municipal of Bacolod, Philippines. It was built in the 1930s and its architecture is a
combination of Castilian and Tuscan and has three storeys, including the tower room,
known as the torre.

During World War II, Don Mariano's Ancestral house was the most prominent
structure with a view over the whole city. The commanding Japanese general was
disguised as a family gardener. As the war broke, the Japanese seized the Mariano
Ramos Ancestral house in order to use it as a watchtower and as a headquarters.

San Diego Pro-cathedral

The San Diego Pro-cathedral, formerly known as the San Diego Parish Church or
the St. Didacus Parish Church before its declaration as a pro-cathedral in 1994, is an
early 20th-century church in Silay City, Negros Occidental in the Philippines. It is the only
pro-cathedral outside of the national capital of Manila, and is unique in Negros
Occidental for being the only church in the province featuring a cupola or dome.

The Ruins
The mansion dates back to the 1900s when it was built by sugar baron Don
Mariano Ledesma Lacson for his first wife, Maria Braga, a Portuguese from Macau
whom he met in his vacations in Hong Kong. The mansion's structure is of Italianate
architecture enhanced by a belvedere complete with renaissance-type balustrading
typical of the homes of English ship captains. It was burned down in World War II to
prevent the Japanese from using it. It was opened to the public by descendants of the
original owner and is listed as among the World's 12 most fascinating ruins.

Paglaum Sports Complex

The Paglaum Sports Complex is a provincial-owned sports venue adjacent to the
Negros Occidental High School established during the 1970s that hosted various football
events, such as the 1991 Philippines International Cup and the football event of the
2005 Southeast Asian Games. It also hosted three editions of the Palarong Pambansa
(1971, 1974, 1979). However, the stadium became unfit to host football matches
following the erection of business establishments around the area. In 2012, a two-
hectare portion of the four-hectare complex was partitioned for the construction of the
Capitol-owned Negros First CyberCentre (NFCC) as an IT-BPO Outsourcing Hub. As of
2013, the provincial government has been proposing for a renovation of the stadium to
 serve as alternative venue to Panaad Park and Sports Complex, particularly for football
competition. Recently, the Paglaum Sports Complex also serves as an alternative venue
to the Bacolod Public Plaza for the MassKara Festival celebration.

Negros Occidental Multi-Purpose Activity Center

The Negros Occidental Multi-Purpose Activity Center (NOMPAC) is a provincial-
owned multi-use gym located in Bacolod, adjacent to the Capitol Park and Lagoon. It is
currently used mostly for basketball, karatedo and boxing matches. Aside from the gym,
it also serves as evacuation site of the city and province during disasters and likewise
also serves as cultural facilities in many events and celebrations.

MEDIA
Modern communication facilities, as well as radio, television and newspapers, are
available in the province. Most are provided by dominant national players in the industry like
PLDT, Globe Telecom and their subsidiaries. For television and radio, the major providers are
network giants ABS-CBN, GMA Network, The 5 Network and CNN Philippines. Cable TV provides
access to BBC, ESPN and other international programs. National and international newspapers
are available on the same day of issue in Manila.

Bacolod is noted for being the home of the Negros Summer Workshops, founded by
multi-award-winning filmmaker and Negrense Peque Gallaga. Founded in 1991, Workshops has
long been training students from different parts of the country who wish to learn courses in
film-making, acting, writing, and more. Some of its alumni include actors in mainstream
Philippine show business.

Negros Occidental has also been used as a setting and location shoot for various films
and television shows, most notable of which is the 1981 epic Oro, Plata, Mata where Hacienda
Rosalia is the setting. Recent films that were set and filmed in Negros are Ligaw Liham (2007),
Namets! (2008), and everyday I Love You (2015). There is one regional newscast program in
Bacolod: TV Patrol Negros (ABS-CBN Bacolod)

REPUBLIC ACT 8448

AN ACT SEPARATING THE ILOILO STATE COLLEGE OF FISHERIES IN SAGAY, NEGROS

OCCIDENTAL, FROM ILOILO STATE COLLEGE OF FISHERIES AND CONVERTING IT INTO AN
INDEPENDENT STATE COLLEGE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY TO BE KNOWN AS THE
NORTHERN NEGROS STATE COLLEGE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY, AND APPROPRIATING
FUNDS THEREFOR

Section 1. The Iloilo State College of Fisheries, hereinafter referred to as the College, in Sagay,
Negros Occidental, which is an extension of the Iloilo State College of Fisheries, is hereby
separated from the Iloilo State College of Fisheries and converted into an independent state
college of science and technology to be known as the Northern Negros State College of Science
and Technology.
Section 2. The State College shall primarily provide higher technological, professional and
vocational instruction and training in science, fishery, forestry, agriculture, engineering and
industrial fields, as well as short-term technical or vocational courses. It shall also promote
research, advanced studies, extension work and progressive leadership in its areas of
specialization.

The existing high school shall be transferred to the jurisdiction and supervision of the
Department of Education, Culture and Sports: provided, that this high school shall be allowed to
remain and operate within the campus of the College until it shall have been transferred to
another location, or until its students shall have been accommodated in other public or private
high schools: provided, further, that the College may operate a reasonably-sized laboratory
school if it has a college of education.

Section 3. In addition to its present curricular offerings, the State College shall offer
undergraduate courses in the fields of science, fishery, agriculture, education, forestry, marine
biology, engineering and other courses and fields of specialization as the Board of Trustees may
deem necessary. It shall likewise offer short-term technical or vocational courses, provide
nonformal education and undertake vigorous extension and research programs in food
production, nutrition, health and sports development.

Section 4. The College shall have the general powers of a corporation as set forth in the
corporation law. The administration of the College and the exercise of its corporate powers
shall be vested exclusively in the Board of Trustees and the president of the College insofar as
authorized by the Board.

Section 5. The governing body of the College shall be the Board of Trustees, hereinafter
referred to as the Board, which shall be composed of the following:

(a) The chairman of the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), chairman;

(b) The president of the College, vice-chairman;

(c) The chairman of the Committee on Education, Arts and Culture of the Senate, member;

(d) The chairman of the Committee on Education and Culture of the House of Representatives,
member;

(e) The Director-General of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA),
member;

(f) The president of the faculty association of the College, member;

(g) The president of the supreme student council of the College, member;
(h) The president of the alumni association of the College, member; and

(i) At least two (2) prominent citizens who have distinguished themselves in their professions or
fields of specialization of the College chosen from among a list of at least five (5) persons
qualified in the Province of Negros Occidental, as recommended by the search committee
constituted by the College president in consultation with the chairman of the CHED based on
the normal standards and qualifications for the position, members.

The chairman of the Commission on Higher Education, the president of the College, the
education committee chairmen of the Senate and the House, and the Director-General of the
National Economic and Development Authority shall have an ex officio term of office.

The term of office of the president of the faculty association, the federation of student councils
and, when deemed necessary, the president of the alumni association, shall be coterminous
with their term/terms of office.

The two (2) prominent citizens shall serve for a term of four (4) years and two (2) years,
respectively.

In case of vacancy in the office of the president, the officer-in-charge of the College designated
by the Board shall serve for the unexpired term only.

The president of the State College, whose term may be terminated according to this Act, shall
be entitled to full retirement benefits under existing laws.

Section 6. The Board shall promulgate and implement policies in accordance with the declared
policies on education and other pertinent provisions of the Philippine Constitution on
education, science and technology, arts, culture and sports (as well as the policies, standards
and thrusts of the CHED under Republic Act No. 7722).

Section 7. The Board shall have the following specific powers and duties in addition to its
general powers of administration and the exercise of all the powers granted to the board of
directors of a corporation under existing laws:

(a) To enact rules and regulations not contrary to law as may be necessary to carry out the
purposes and functions of the College;

(b) To receive and appropriate all sums as may be provided for the support of the College in the
manner it may, in its discretion, determine to carry out the purposes and functions of the
College;
(c) To import duty-free, subject to existing laws, essential commodities, materials and
equipment for educational or technological programs: provided, that such commodities,
materials, and equipment are not available locally at a comparable price;

(d) To receive in trust legacies, gifts and donations of real and personal properties of all kinds
and to administer and dispose the same when necessary for the benefit of the College and
subject to the limitations, directions and instructions of the donor, if any. Such donations shall
be exempt from all taxes and shall be considered as deductible items from the income tax of
the donor;

(e) To fix tuition fees and other necessary school charges such as, but not limited to,
matriculation fees, graduation fees, and laboratory fees, as the Board may deem proper to
impose;

(f) To authorize the construction or repair of its buildings, machineries, equipment, and other
facilities and the purchase and acquisition of real and personal properties, including necessary
supplies, materials and equipment;

(g) To confirm designations of vice-presidents, deans, directors, heads of departments and the
appointments of faculty members and other officials and employees of the State College made
by the president of the College;

(h) To fix and adjust the salaries of faculty members and administrative officials and employees
in accordance with the revised compensation and position classification system;

(i) To approve the curricula, institutional programs and rules of discipline drawn by the
administrative and academic councils as herein provided;

(j) To confer degrees upon successful candidates for graduation, to award honorary degrees
upon persons in recognition of their outstanding contributions in the fields of education, public
service, arts, science and technology, or in any field of specialization; and to authorize the
award of certificates for completion of non-degree and non-traditional courses;

(k) To establish chairs in the College and to provide fellowships for qualified faculty members
and scholarships to deserving students; and

(l) To establish branches in the Province of Negros Occidental, if and when it becomes essential
and necessary, where there is no existing school offering similar programs or courses, to
promote and carry out equal access to educational opportunities as mandated by the
Constitution.
Section 8. The Board of Trustees shall convene regularly at least once every two (2) months.
However, the chairman of the Board of Trustees may, upon three (3) days prior written notice,
call a special meeting whenever necessary.

A quorum of the Board shall consist of a majority of all members holding office at the time of
the meeting: provided, however, that the chairman of the CHED, who is the chairman of the
Board or the president of the State College is among those present in the meeting.

In the absence of the chairman of the CHED, a commissioner of the CHED, duly designated by
him, shall represent him in the meeting with all the rights and responsibilities of a regular
member and of a presiding officer.

A senator, preferably coming from the region or province where the school is located, shall
automatically represent the chairman of the Senate Committee on Education, Arts and Culture,
when he is unable to attend, with all the rights, privileges and responsibilities of a regular
member.

The representative of the House coming from the district where the school is located, shall
automatically represent the chairman of the House Committee on Education and Culture, when
he is unable to attend, with all the rights, privileges and responsibilities of a regular member:
provided, that in the case of a multi-campus school located in a multi-district province, any of
the representatives where the campus is located may represent the chairman.

In the absence of the Director-General of the NEDA, the regional director where the school is
located, shall represent him.

The members of the Board shall not receive any salary but shall be entitled to honoraria and
reimbursements for actual and necessary expenses incurred either in their attendance to
meetings of the Board or for other official business as authorized by resolution of the Board,
subject to existing laws on honoraria and allowances.

Section 9. The State College shall be headed by a president to be appointed by the Board upon
the recommendation of a duly constituted search committee, and shall hold office for a term of
three (3) years extendible only for another three (3) years unless he reaches the age of
retirement or earlier removed for cause or becomes incapacitated to discharge the duties of
the office.

In case of vacancy in the office of the president by reason of death, resignation, incapacity of
the president to perform the functions of his office, or removal for cause, the Board shall have
the authority to designate an officer-in-charge of the College pending the appointment of a
successor.
The powers and duties of the president of the State College in addition to those specifically
provided in this Act, shall be those usually pertaining to the office of the president of similar
colleges.

The salary of the president of the State College shall be subject to the revised compensation
and position classification system and shall be comparable to that being received by the
presidents of similar educational institutions of like enrollment and standing.

Section 10. There shall be an administrative council consisting of the president of the College as
chairman, the vice-president(s), deans, directors and other officials of equal rank whose duty is
to implement the policies governing the administration, management and development
planning of the College, as approved by the Board.

Section 11. There shall be an academic council with the president of the College as chairman,
and all members of the instructional staff with the rank of not lower than assistant professor, as
members. The academic council shall have the power to prescribe curricular offerings subject to
the approval of the Board. It shall fix the requirements for the admission to the College, as well
as for graduation and the conferring of degrees, subject to review and/or approval by the Board
through the president of the College. It shall also have disciplinary powers over the students
through the president within the limits prescribed by the rules of discipline, as approved by the
Board.

Section 12. There shall be a secretary of the College who shall be appointed by the Board upon
recommendation of the president of the College. He shall also be the secretary of the Board
and shall keep such records of the College as may be determined by the Board.

Section 13. The Treasurer of the Republic of the Philippines shall be the ex officio treasurer of
the College.

Section 14. No religious opinion or affiliation shall be the matter of inquiry in the appointment
of faculty members of the College: provided, however, that no member of the faculty shall
teach for or against any particular church or religious sect.

Section 15. No student shall be denied admission to the College by reason of sex, nationality,
religion, or political affiliation.

Section 16. No member of the faculty of the College shall attempt directly or indirectly, under
penalty of dismissal by the Board of Trustees, to influence students or any person in the College
towards any ideology, political or otherwise, which agitates the throw of the duly constituted
government.

Section 17. The appointment of the officer-in-charge of the College pending the appointment of
the president by the Board upon its composition shall be made by the CHED.
Section 18. On or before the fifteenth (15th) day of the second month after the opening of the
regular classes each year, the Board shall file with the Office of the President of the Philippines,
through the chairperson of the CHED and to both Houses of Congress, a detailed report on the
progress, conditions and needs of the College.

Section 19. All the assets, fixed and movable, personnel records and facilities of the Iloilo State
College of Fisheries in Sagay, Negros Occidental, as well as liabilities or obligations, are hereby
transferred to the Northern Negros State College of Science and Technology: provided,
however, that the positions, rights and security of tenure of personnel therein employed under
existing laws prior to absorption by the State College are not impaired: provided, further, that
the incumbents of the positions shall remain in the same status until otherwise provided for by
the Board. All parcels of land belonging to the government occupied by the Iloilo State College
of Fisheries in the said extension campus are hereby declared the property of the Northern
Negros State College of Science and Technology and shall be titled under the name: provided,
furthermore, that should the State College cease to exist or be abolished or such parcels of land
aforementioned be no longer needed by the State College, the same shall revert back to the
Province of Negros Occidental.

Section 20. All accounts and expenses of the College shall be audited by the Commission on
Audit or its duly authorized representative.

Section 21. The heads of bureaus and offices of the national government are hereby authorized
to loan or transfer, upon request of the president of the College, such apparatus, equipment or
supplies as may be needed by the College and to detail employees for duty therein when, in the
judgment of the bureau or office, such apparatus, equipment, supplies or services of such
employees can be spared without serious detriment to the public service. Employees so
detailed shall perform such duties as required of them by the president of the College and the
time so employed shall be counted as part of their regular services.

Section 22. It shall be the continuing policy of the State College to accept the affiliation and/or
integration within its operation of any existing national school whose programs can contribute
largely and effectively to the attainment of its objectives.

Section 23. The CHED shall extend institutional development assistance to the State College
specifically in the areas of faculty and facility development.

Section 24. The Sagay Marine Reserve covering the islands of Molocaboc, Diutay, Matabas, and
Suyac, as well as their surrounding reefs and the reefs of Carbin and Maca, situated in the City
of Sagay, Province of Negros Occidental, declared as marine protected area by virtue of
Proclamation No. 592, may be utilized by the College for their research, experimental and
laboratory purposes.

Section 25. The amount necessary for the implementation of this Act shall be charged against
the current year’s appropriations of the Iloilo State College of Fisheries, except the sum needed
to continue the operations of the existing high school. Thereafter, such sums as may be
necessary for the continued operation and maintenance of the Northern Negros State College
of Science and Technology shall be included in the annual General Appropriations Act.

Section 26. All laws, presidential decrees, executive orders, rules and regulations contrary to or
inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby repealed, amended or modified
accordingly.

Section 27. This Act shall take effect upon its approval.

Approved: January 9, 1998