WAR VS. DRUGS Dad against bridge removal in Ermita

Saying it serves other residents in the barangay, Cebu City Councilor Dave Tumulak said the demolition of a foot bridge connecting their village to Barangay Ermita is not a solution to the problem.

Tumulak, who is the deputy mayor for police matter, said the barangay should report and coordinate with the police to give solution to their concerns.

“The suggestion of barangay officials to demolish the structure is very impossible because they already identified it as the passage of the transactions of illegal drugs. That is the responsibility of the barangay (to find solution for the concern), but not to destroy the structure because many will use it,” he said.

During emergencies like fire in Pasil or Ermita, Tumulak said firefighters also use the structure to respond to the scene.

Earlier, the officials of Barangay Pasil asked the City to demolish a foot bridge connecting their village to Barangay Ermita due to the reported illegal activities happening in the area.

Pasil Chief Julius Guioguio said their barangay council and the Barangay Anti-Drug Abuse Council have passed separate resolutions on the matter after he received several reports from concerned residents on the alleged distribution of illegal drugs happening on the structure at Sitio Magsaysay. “Based sa mga istorya sa mga taw nga muagi diha

padung sa Ermita, mismo mga bata between the ages of nine to 11, mao ang musugat sa mga parok (Based on reports by people who pass through here on their way to Ermita, children between 9 to 11 years old are used by the pushers). Their distributors are allegedly not from Pasil, but Ermita,” Guioguio said.

He added that last January 2017, their barangay council built gates on both ends of the bridge to monitor the activities in the entry and exit points.

The foot bridge, which is made of concrete, was originally built for the convenience of shoppers who buy fish and seafood at the Pasil Fish Market. The construction was funded by the City Government.

It was later used by residents of Ermita, especially parents whose children attend school at the Pasil Elementary School, Guioguio said.

But because of the reported illegal activities, the village chief said they found the need to destroy the structure.

He said they have already brought the matter to the authorities. Guioguio believes that once the bridge is destroyed, it will also stop the activities.

In a separate interview, City Office for Substance Abuse Prevention (Cosap) Executive Director Garry Lao said he will bring the matter to the City Anti-Drug Abuse Council and to Mayor Tomas Osmeña when the latter returns from the United States.

He will also call for a conference with Guioguio, Ermita Barangay Captain Mark Rizaldy Miral and Carbon Police Station Chief Insp. Jacinto Mandal on Jan. 17.

The Cebu City Police Office (CCPO) welcomed the move of the BADAC to remove the bridge connecting Barangay Ermita and Pasil.

Supt. Artemio Ricabo, deputy city director for administration and spokesperson of the Cebu City Police Office (CCPO), said that destroying the bridge would cut off the trade as it would be easier for authorities to intercept shabu trade.

“If they would go to the main road, we would conduct checkpoints there,” Ricabo said.