81 brgys. cleared

All 56 brgys. of Camotes towns included in list of drug-free areas

Barangay Anti-Drug Abuse Councils and Municipal Anti-Drug Abuse Councils certified villages as free of pushers, users

EIGHTY-ONE barangays in nine towns in Cebu are now free from junkies and drug pushers, according to police.

These include all 56 villages of the municipalities of San Francisco, Poro, Tudela, and Pilar on Camotes. The barangays have fulfilled the standards set by the Dangerous Drugs Board’s (DDB) resolution, which provides guidelines for the drug-clearing operations in the barangays.

“Buong isla ng Camotes ay drug-free,” said Senior Supt. Eric Noble, the Cebu Provincial Police Office (CPPO) director.

The official believes the declaration is a “big boost” to the island’s tourism industry.

“Gaganda ang image ng Camotes (Camotes’ image will improve),” said Noble.

He said 3,000 pushers and users surrendered to the police.

The barangays of Camotes along with six others from the towns of Dumanjug and Tabuelan in mainland Cebu were declared drug-free with finality last Thursday, during the evaluation conducted by representatives from CPPO, Philippine Drug En- forcement Agency (PDEA) 7 and the Cebu Provincial Anti-Drug Abuse Office (CPADAO).

The Barangay AntiDrug Abuse Councils (Badac) and Municipal Anti-Drug Abuse Councils (Madac) had certified these villages as free from illegal drug peddlers and junkies.

Noble said he challenged the police station chiefs to maintain the drugfree statuses of the villages.

“They will continue their monitoring. There will still be anti-drug operations,” he said in a phone interview. “The declaration will not be affected as long as the operatives who will arrest a drug personality are not from PDEA, PIB (Provincial Intelligence Branch) and other units.”

Noble said the police chiefs will be ordered to explain if other units can capture pushers in their respective jurisdictions.

Sixteen barangays in Alcoy, Boljoon and Santander had also been declared drug-free.

Police Regional Office 7 Director Chief Supt. Noli Taliño said the other other police units are conducting drug-clearing operations and evaluations.

Barangays

He was informed that the Cebu City Police Office is set to declare some villages as drug-free.

The new drug-free barangays are Cabongaan, Campo, Consuelo, Esperanza, Himensulan, Montealegre, Northern Poblacion, San Isidro, Santa Cruz, Santiago, Sonog, Southern Poblacion, Uni- dos, Union, and Western Poblacion in San Francisco; and Adela, Altavista, Cagcagan, Cansabusab, Daan Paz, Eastern Poblacion, Esperanza, Libertad, Mabini, Mercedes, Pagsa, Paz, Rizal, San Jose, Santa Rita, Teguis, and Western Poblacion in Poro.

Other villages are Buenavista, Calmante, Daan Secante, General, McArthur, Northern Poblacion, Santander, Secante Bag-o, Southern Poblacion, and Villahermosa in Tudela; and San Isidro, San Juan, Monserrat, Cawit, Imelda, Esperanza, Lower Pobla-

cion, Upper Poblacion, Moabog, Villahermosa, Biasong, Lanao, and Dapdap.

Lamak, Matalo and Kambanog in Dumanug; Maravilla, Olivo and Mabanao in Tabuelan are also cleared.

Based on DDB’s paramaters, a community is considered drug-free if drugs are no longer avail- able there; it isn’t being used as a drug transit or transshipment point; it has no illegal drug laboratory, chemical drug warehouse, or a marijuana cultivation site; and it has no resorts or other places being used as drug dens.

Absence of drug pushers, drug users or dependents, as well as protectors or coddlers and financiers, are the other factors before a village can be classified as drug-free.

DDB, in its resolu- tion, said barangay officials should be active in anti-drug activities, and members of the Sangguniang Kabataan should help maintain the “drugliberated” status of the barangay.

There should also be drug awareness, preventive education and information, and other related programs, and voluntary and compulsory drug treatment and a rehabilitation processing desk.