BACOLOD CITY: Two schools on Negros Island were named as two of 24 testing centers in the 2020/2021 Bar examinations. In Bacolod City, the University of St. La Salle will have 1,340 slots while the Silliman University in Dumaguete City in Negros Oriental will have 1,000 slots, according to Bar Bulletin No. 23, Series of 2021. Senior Supreme Court Associate Justice Marvic Leonen, of The Office of the Chairman for the 2020/21 Bar Examinations, said the local testing centers aim to 'reduce examinees' travel and accommodation expenses and to minimize their transit amid the coronavirus pandemic.' Four other local testing centers, three in Metro Manila and one in Central Luzon, are still being considered, the bulletin said. 'Separate memorandum of agreement was executed between the Supreme Court and the local testing centers. All parties have guaranteed required health and safety protocols shall be strictly implemented and community quarantine classifications per area shall be respected,' it added. According to the high court, Bar applicants will select their local testing center through the Bar Personal Login Unified System. To make the examinations more inclusive for all examinees, venue matching will not be on a first-come, first-served basis. Instead, applicants from remote areas will be prioritized. They may select their chosen local testing centers only after their applications have been approved by the high tribunal en banc. The Office of the Bar Confidant will send separate emails to the approved applicants for this purpose.
