The passage of the biofuels bill by the Senate yesterday was hailed by Bukidnon Rep. Juan Miguel Zubiri as an early Christmas gift for the Filipino people and for sugar-producing provinces like Negros Occidental.

Senator Mar Roxas told the DAILY STAR last night that the Senate voted unanimously to pass the biofuels bill that would require all liquid fuels for motors and engines sold in the Philippines to contain locally-sourced components.

He said the Senate version is worded to ensure that the sugarcane used for ethanol blended with gasoline is sourced locally to protect local producers.

PDEA confiscates
marijuana bricks
BY GILBERT BAYORAN

Operatives of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency yesterday seized about 30 kilos of marijuana bricks from a suspected drug courier at Bangga Pepsi in Brgy.Bata, Bacolod City.

The marijuana bricks that were worth P300,000, placed in two traveling bags. They were confiscated from Nolen Sariego, a resident of Brgy. 2 poblacion, Sipalay, who had just arrived from Manila, Supt.Rolen Balquin, Western Visayas PDEA chief, said.

Last month the PDEA also seized P500,000 worth of shabu from Alex Casalda and Florenio Bautista in Brgy.Punta Taytay, Bacolod City.

NOPPO ranked last
in Western VIsayas
BY DONALYN GUERRERO

The Negros Occidental Police Provincial Office ranked last among the six provincial police offices in Western Visayas in the third quarter of this year's Police Regional Office 6 performance evaluation rating.

NOPPO, a consistent top performer in the first and second quarters among the Western Visayas police provincial offices, ranked fifth in the performance evaluation rating from July to September, police reports showed.

The Antique Police Office ranked No. 1 garnering total points of 799.37, followed by Bacolod City Police Office 793.92 total points. The BCPO has remained in the No. 2 post from the first to third quarters of this year's rating, records show.