Five Cebu City barangays given drug-cleared status

Five barangays were declared “drug-cleared” after meeting the requirements of Cebu City’s campaign against illegal drugs during the second quarterly meeting of the Anti-Drug Abuse Council held at the Cebu City Hall on Monday, June 23.

- 

The barangays are T. Padilla, Bulacao, Pahina San Nicolas, Bonbon, and Poblacion Pardo, which were given drug-cleared certificates from the Regional Oversight Committee on Barangay Drug Clearing (ROCBDC).

With this, there are now 39 drug-cleared barangays in Cebu City, while 41 barangays remained uncleared.

According to Jonah John Rodriguez, head of the Cebu City Office for Substance Abuse Prevention (COSAP), his office has three anti-drug focused programs --- prevention, treatment and rehabilitation, and reintegration and sustainability.

"We always believe there's life after drug addiction," Rodriguez said.

The ceremony was attended by representatives from the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) - 7, Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), Philippine National Police (PNP), and other concerned agencies.

Aside from the certificates, each barangay received a P100,000 cash incentives from the Cebu City Government through COSAP.

However, Rodriguez clarified that being given a drug-cleared status does not mean a barangay is entirely free from drugs.