PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Thursday signed into law a measure merging Negros Occidental, Negros Oriental, and Siquijor into one region.

The ceremonial signing for the Negros Island Region Act (Republic Act 12000) in Malacañang was witnessed by leaders of the Senate and House of Representatives, Cabinet secretaries, and local officials from Negros.

RA 12000 unifies the provinces of Negros Occidental, including Bacolod City, Negros Oriental and Siquijor to promote administration decentralization; strengthen local autonomy; and accelerate economic, cultural and social development. "This union is long overdue and makes very practical sense, especially in the Negros Island, where people are located on one island but are governed under separate administrative regions," Marcos said after the signing ceremony.

"For decades now, Negrenses have endured the rigors of sea travel, unnecessary expenses, bureaucratic red tape, [and] inefficiency that this arrangement has brought, especially when there is a need to urgently access government services from regional centers on other islands," he said.

The new law is expected to address the uneven growth and disparity of funding between Negros Oriental and Occidental provinces, which share many of the same natural resources and industries such as sugar, tourism and renewable energy. The President said he envisions the Negros Island Region (NIR) "as one of the centers of development in the Visayas, further accelerating socioeconomic development for the millions of Negrenses and providing strategic convergence regarding resources, investments, and economic planning." Before the new law was enacted, Negros Occidental was under Western Visayas, while Negros Oriental and Siquijor were part of Central Visayas.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. signs the 'Enactment of Negros Island Region Act (RA12000)' and 'Real Property Valuation and Assessment Reform Act (RA12001)' on June 13, 2024. Senate President Francis Escudero and other senators, Speaker Martin Romualdez and members of the House of Representatives were present during the ceremony inside the Malacañan Palace. PHOTO BY MIKE ALQUINTO President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. signs the 'Enactment of Negros Island Region Act (RA12000)' and 'Real Property Valuation and Assessment Reform Act (RA12001)' on June 13, 2024. Senate President Francis Escudero and other senators, Speaker Martin Romualdez and members of the House of Representatives were present during the ceremony inside the Malacañan Palace. PHOTO BY MIKE ALQUINTO President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. signs the 'Enactment of Negros Island Region Act (RA12000)' and 'Real Property Valuation and Assessment Reform Act (RA12001)' on June 13, 2024. Senate President Francis Escudero and other senators, Speaker Martin Romualdez and members of the House of Representatives were present during the ceremony inside the Malacañan Palace. PHOTO BY MIKE ALQUINTO President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. signs the 'Enactment of Negros Island Region Act (RA12000)' and 'Real Property Valuation and Assessment Reform Act (RA12001)' on June 13, 2024. Senate President Francis Escudero and other senators, Speaker Martin Romualdez and members of the House of Representatives were present during the ceremony inside the Malacañan Palace. PHOTO BY MIKE ALQUINTO President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. signs the 'Enactment of Negros Island Region Act (RA12000)' and 'Real Property Valuation and Assessment Reform Act (RA12001)' on June 13, 2024. Senate President Francis Escudero and other senators, Speaker Martin Romualdez and members of the House of Representatives were present during the ceremony inside the Malacañan Palace. PHOTO BY MIKE ALQUINTO President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. signs the 'Enactment of Negros Island Region Act (RA12000)' and 'Real Property Valuation and Assessment Reform Act (RA12001)' on June 13, 2024. Senate President Francis Escudero and other senators, Speaker Martin Romualdez and members of the House of Representatives were present during the ceremony inside the Malacañan Palace. PHOTO BY MIKE ALQUINTO President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. signs the 'Enactment of Negros Island Region Act (RA12000)' and 'Real Property Valuation and Assessment Reform Act (RA12001)' on June 13, 2024. Senate President Francis Escudero and other senators, Speaker Martin Romualdez and members of the House of Representatives were present during the ceremony inside the Malacañan Palace. PHOTO BY MIKE ALQUINTO

Negros Occidental 3rd District Rep. Jose Francisco "Kiko" Benitez said the new region will bring government services closer to the people in Negros Island and Siquijor.

Benitez said in a statement he hopes the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) will immediately convene the Technical Working Group that will iron out the institutional arrangements for the transition.

"Together with my co-principal authors in the House, I thank President Marcos Jr. for his support of our dream of a separate administrative region for Negros Occidental, Negros Oriental and Siquijor," he said.

Sen. Juan Miguel Zubiri, whose paternal family hails from Kabankalan, Negros Occidental, said merging Negros Oriental, Negros Occidental and Siquijor into one region "has long been a dream of mine and of my fellow Negrenses." The senator was author and co-sponsor of Senate Bill 2507 creating the NIR.

"We have long wanted to have our own region, with our own government offices readily accessible to our people," he said.

"We will also be able to attract more investors to come to the region, since the merging into one administrative region is set to improve our ease of doing business. More investments, more jobs, more growth," Zubiri said.