CPDRC’s drug woes

This government’s war against illegal drugs has been bloody. You would think that the rising body count would be enough to deter people from getting involved, yet the illegal drug trade continues to flourish.

Every day, authorities manage to seize thousands and sometimes millions worth of shabu.

And I’m just referring to operations that are conducted on the streets.

Last Friday, police conducted a surprise inspection at the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center (CPDRC).

It was a “surprise” because they didn’t inform the jail management beforehand.

Aside from packets of shabu, police also confiscated 190 marijuana sticks, 191 cellphones, pocket wi-fis and drug paraphernalia, among others.

Mind you, this is not the first time that illegal drugs were discovered inside the provincial jail. There have been other Oplan Greyhounds that yielded a similar result.

Now, you’re probably wondering how all these contraband got inside what is supposed to be a secure facility. After all, everybody who enters undergoes thorough inspection. And I mean cavity-search thorough.

In 2014, packs of shabu that were seized during a buy-bust in Liloan were traced to the CPDRC, prompting Gov. Hilario Davide III to order an investigation.

“Naa gyud tingali palusot diha. Tingali naa pud komplot-komplot sa employees, mga gwardiya. That’s why we are investigating,” he said. You think?

So the problem had been identified. Four years ago yet. And I’m sorry, it’s not “maybe” some jail personnel are involved, they are involved. There has to be collusion between them and known drug personalities detained inside.

Apparently, Police Regional Office 7 Director Debold Sinas thought so, too, because he announced that they would be working in close coordination with CPDRC management and other jails throughout the region to implement “Joint Intel Project Cerberus.”

To those not familiar with Greek mythology, Cerberus is the three-headed dog that guards the gates of Hades to prevent the dead from leaving.

“The first head is our joint coordination for the internal cleansing both with the PNP and their personnel… Second, we are trying to neutralize contacts sa loob (inside). That’s why we have regular greyhounds similar in Mandaue and the provincial jail where their guards were not informed. And the third head is smart policing, where we are trying to seek support to install high-tech jammers to prevent the coordination of drug transactions inside jails through cellular phones,” Sinas said.

I’m sure the Capitol has money to spare for this purpose.

So, what do you think, Governor?