CSF officials, employees undergo drug test
CITY OF SAN FERNANDO - Local officials and employees of the city government here on Monday submitted themselves to random drug testing as part of the preventive drug education and advocacy orientation.
At least 715 employees, including city officials and department heads participated in the said drug testing where urine samples were t aken.
Mayor Edwin Santiago, who also submitted himself to the testing, said that it was the first time local government officials and employees have undergone the drug test.
“This is the first time that the city hall employees have undergone drug test. Aside from strengthening the anti-drug campaign of President Rodrigo Duterte, this will also boost the public’s trust in the government,” Santiago said.
He added that the activity is pursuant to the memorandum circular issued by the Civil Service Commission (CSC) that mandates all public officials and government employees to a random drug test as a condition for continuous empl oyment .
“We have tested half of the population of the local government unit employees. They were selected randomly through an electronic raffle system,” Santiago added.
The test was conducted by the DrugCheck Philippines Incorporated and results are expected to be released after three weeks.
According to the CSC, any government official or employee who tests positive shall undergo a drug dependency examination. This will only be conducted by the Department of Health (DOH) or any of its accredited medical practitioners to assess what type of user the person is and determine the treatment he or she needs.
Meanwhile, the employees were also oriented about the cause and effects of substance abuse and the effective ways to treat and prevent drug-related disorders.
They were also reminded to refrain from smoking cigarettes and taking alcohol which are also known as dangerous combos that causes harm to the human body.