BORONGAN CITY- More than 100 barangays in Eastern Samar have been declared as drug-free by the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA).
PDEA assistant provincial officer Josefat Macawile announced this during the October 3 meeting of the SIPPAD (Samar Island for Peace, Prosperity, and Development) held this city.
Macawile said that out of the Eastern Samar 597 barangays covering its 22 towns and this city, 141 have been declared as drug-free as of last month.
“But this doesn’t necessarily mean that the province is already free from illegal drugs.There is still that risk that illegal drug trade and use will return to these drug-cleared villages,” he said.
“It is now the job of the barangay anti-drug abuse council (Badac) to monitor the illegal drug trade situation and status in the respective barangays,” Macawile added.
Badac is headed by the barangay chairman with the village councilor who chairs the committee on peace and order as the vice-chairman.
The members of the committee include the chairman of the committee on women and family, Sangguniang Kabataan, tanod chief, school principal, representatives from non-government organizations and faith-based organizations.
Among its mandate is to formulate, implement, and evaluate programs and projects on drug abuse prevention, gather and update data on all drug-related incidents and its effects to the peace and order situation and submits the monthly report of the city or municipal anti-drug abuse council and refers those suspected of drug using for counseling and rehabilitation.
(ROEL T. AMAZONA)
