BACOLOD CITY -Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez here said on Monday the establishment of the expanded Negros Island Region (NIR) through an executive order (EO) is expected to be realized within the year. "I had the chance to talk to (Department of Interior and Local Government) Secretary (Benjamin) Abalos Jr. for the resumption of the NIR plus, it has been expanded in what we have proposed," he said in a press briefing. Benitez, the prime mover of the Visayan bloc, said lawmakers from the Visayas have agreed to include Siquijor in the proposed new region, which originally included only Negros Occidental, Negros Oriental, and Bacolod, the lone highly-urbanized city in the island. He noted that Siquijor is nearer to Dumaguete City, the capital of Negros Oriental, than Cebu City, the regional center of Central Visayas. "The mechanics and the process of how the EO will be drafted for the signature of the President (Ferdinand Marcos Jr.) are now being discussed. We need to submit resolutions to Secretary Abalos and we hope to see the resumption of the NIR soon. The target is within the year," Benitez said. On May 29, 2015, the NIR was first created through EO 183 signed by then-President Benigno Aquino III, separating Negros Occidental from Western Visayas and Negros Oriental from Central Visayas. However, on Aug. 7, 2017, former President Rodrigo Duterte issued EO 38 abolishing the NIR, stressing the need to ensure that priority government programs and projects are sufficiently funded. Under the 19th Congress, Benitez's brother, Negros Occidental Third District Rep. Jose Francisco Benitez, led a group of Negrense lawmakers in filing House Bill 1146, seeking to create a separate region for Negros Island and Siquijor to be known as Region 6-B. Region 6 is also known as Western Visayas, where Negros Occidental and Bacolod currently belong. "The challenge is to transform the economy of Negros Island to ensure that economic growth redounds to the benefit of the people. Here, the close economic coordination of the two Negros provinces is most crucial. Re-unifying the two Negros provinces under one administrative region therefore becomes necessary," the bill's explanatory note said. It added that "in view of its proximity and cultural similarities, the inclusion of Siquijor Province to the proposed Region 6-B is logical and practical". Under the current setup, Western Visayas includes the provinces of Negros Occidental, Iloilo, Antique, Aklan, Capiz, and Guimaras as well as the cities of Bacolod and Iloilo. Negros Oriental is under Central Visayas or Region 7, along with Cebu City, Lapu-Lapu City, Mandaue City, and the provinces of Cebu, Bohol, and Siquijor. (PNA) }