PDEA: Drug-affectation rate in Central Visayas continues to drop

CEBU CITY, Cebu (PIA) – The number of drug-affected barangays in Central Visayas has significantly decreased over the past few years, according to the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) 7.

The drug affectation rate in the region dropped to 40.59 percent in 2023 from 48.05 percent in 2022.

During the recent Regional Law Enforcement Coordinating Committee (RLECC) Meeting here, PDEA reported that the drug affectation rate in the region has seen a continued decline for the past six years, from 90.81 percent in 2017 to 40.59 percent in 2023.

This means around 60 percent of the total barangays in the region have already been declared to be either drug-cleared or drug-free.

Of the total 3,033 barangays in Central Visayas, there are now only 1,219 barangays considered to be drug-affected.

In Central Visayas, Negros Oriental logged the highest drug affectation rate with 53.77 percent, followed by Bohol with 39.77 percent, Cebu with 36.77 percent, and Siquijor province with zero or no reported drug-affected barangays.

RLECC 7 chairperson and Police Regional Office 7 regional director Police BGen. Anthony Aberin lauded the efforts of the agencies in their accomplishments leading to the success of the anti-illegal drugs campaign in the province.

“I encourage everyone, na ituloy ang magandang ginagawa (to continue what you’re doing). To the RLECC member agencies, let us continue to enhance our efforts in the area of peace and order and in our fight against criminality and illegal drugs,” said Aberin.

He said the committee hopes to strengthen its whole-of-nation approach in the war against illegal drugs.

“All law enforcement agencies should strongly collaborate and converge their efforts so we can gain further success in our fight against illegal drugs. With the aggressive approach of the RLECC agencies, there is no reason that we cannot achieve our goal of transforming the affected barangays in Central Visayas into drug-cleared or drug-free barangays,” Aberin added.

PDEA also attributed the continued reduction of drug-affected barangays to the effective implementation of the Barangay Drug Clearing Program (BDCP) in the local government units (LGUs).

The agency also partnered with other agencies for the Recovery and Wellness Program (RWP) and Community-Based Drug Rehabilitation Program (CBDRP).

CBDRP is an integrated model for drug users with moderate risk for drug dependence and/or mild substance use disorder.

Clients under this program are provided with care from outreach and low-threshold services through coordination with health, social, and other non-specialist services needed to meet their needs.

LGUs are mandated to implement CBDRPs, depending on available resources and the number of clients they accept. (RGC/PIA7 Cebu)

Comments

DepEd7 installs new schools superintendent in Dgte

(l-r) Department of Education Region 7 Director Salustiano Jimenez, Dr. Juditha Mapue, Dr. Casiana Caberte, Mayor Felipe Antonio Remollo, and Assistant Regional Director Atty.. Fiel Almendra during the installation rites of the new schools division superintendent in Dumaguete City. (Contributed photo) DUMAGUETE CITY, Negros Oriental, April 17 (PIA) -- Department of Education (DepEd) Region 7 Director Salustiano Jimenez led the installation of Dr. Caisana Caberte as the new schools division superintendent of Dumaguete City. Caberte, who was previously assigned at the Bohol Division, will replace Dr. Gregorio Cyrus Elejorde who is now promoted as Assistant Regional Director of Region 9 based in Pagadian City. Dumaguete City Mayor Felipe Antonio Remollo welcomed and congratulated Caberte during her official inauguration in a simple rite in the city. Caberte was a curriculum specialist and a textbook evaluator at the Bohol Division and has been a recipient ...

PRESS RELEASE: Smart’s ‘School-in-a-Bag’ reaches last-mile schools in NegOr

DepEd Secretary hails education as 'solution' More remote schools have been reached by Smart Communications, Inc.’s mini portable classroom School-in-a-Bag, bringing learning technologies to far-flung areas to help facilitate quality basic education in last-mile schools. Among these schools is Dobdob Elementary School (ES) which is situated in the farthest barangay in Valencia, Negros Oriental. It is 80 kilometers from the town proper and is only accessible by 4-wheel drive vehicles. Dobdob ES has a total of 128 students, most of whom are children of farmers. These students often arrive with their shirts drenched in sweat, because they help their parents on the farm before coming to school. But despite that, they still come to class with great vigor and enthusiasm. Leah Apenas, head teacher of Dobdob ES, shared the different struggles she and her colleagues, most especially the students face in the mountain school. “Every time there’s a heavy downpour, students skip classes d...

OCD-7: ‘Only OCD can hold incident command system trainings’

OCD-7 Regional Director Joel Erestain speaking during the 13th episode of the ‘Kapihan sa Bagong Pilipinas’ program held in Cebu City. He emphasized that only OCD is accredited to conduct trainings on Incident Command System. (PIA-7) CEBU CITY, CEBU (PIA) — Only the Office of the Civil Defense (OCD) can conduct training on the Incident Command System (ICS). This was emphasized by OCD-7 regional director Joel Erestain during the 13th episode of the Kapihan sa Bagong Pilipinas on Aug. 20 in Cebu City. As the executive arm of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC), OCD conducts ICS trainings, which is a standardized approach to managing emergency responses and disasters. “So kung mayro’ng mga iba na nagsasabi na nagte-train daw, hindi po sila accredited. Lalong lalo na nagkaroon tayo ng Civil Defense Training Institute, walang ibang pwedeng mag-train ng ICS, basic ICS, hanggang sa down the line,” said Erestain. (So if there are people ...

Philippine Information Agency Central Visayas

Search This Blog