Teacher, Capitol staff ‘drug positive’

Two government employees — a public school teacher and a Capitol staff — were tested positive for illegal drug use.

The Cebu Provincial Anti-Drug Abuse Office (CPADAO) facilitated this month two separate drug tests, whose results were only revealed yesterday.

At least 517 Capitol employees, including department heads of the executive and legislative branches, were made to undergo random drug testing last Monday.

One of them was found positive of illegal drug use.

The names were randomly generated by the Human Resource Department out of over 3,000 Capitol employees.

In a separate drug test, a public school teacher was also tested positive for drug use.

The FREEMAN is withholding the identities of the employees pending the conduct of confirmatory testing.

CPADAO Chief Ivy Durano-Meca said the employees will undergo an assessment to identify their degree of addiction as provided for under the Civil Service rules.

"It (intervention) depends on the degree, but kinahanglan siya mo-submit sa iyang self voluntarily for treatment and rehabilitation," she said.

If the employee will refuse to undergo treatment, the provincial government can file an administrative case against him/her.

"The entire time na mo go through siya'g treatment and rehab, suspended siya that time," Meca said.

Meca reiterated that the provincial government will not shoulder the employees' rehabilitation expenses.

"It will not be shouldered by the government. It will be shouldered by the family," she said.

Moreover, CPADAO also conducted random drug tests on police officers and non-uniform personnel. All of them tested negative for illegal drug use.

CPADAO has started a series of random drug testing activities since last week all over the province.

Ambrad/KBQ