Amid unceasing crackdown on illegal drug trade leading to the ballooning of inmate population in jails, Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Officer-in-Charge (OIC) Catalino S. Cuy is rallying governors and mayors to do community-based rehabilitation program.
He issued a directive to all local chief executives (LCEs) prodding them to adopt and implement a community-based rehabilitation program for low-risk and mild-risk drug surrenderers who have undergone detoxification program by the Department of Health (DOH).
He cited Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB)’s Regulation No. 4, Series of 2016 entitled “Oplan Sagip: Guidelines on Voluntarily Surrender of Drug Users and Dependents and Monitoring Mechanism of Barangay Anti-Drug Abuse Campaigns”.
“Capacitated personnel of the Anti-Drug Abuse Councils (ADACs) shall assess the drug surrenderers to determine their risks and further morbidities,” he said in his memorandum circular to LCEs.
He also noted that Republic Act No. 7160 known as the Local Government Code of 1991, which is turning 26-year old this month, mandates local government units (LGUs) to adopt measures towards the prevention and eradication of drug abuse.
“All LGU-initiated modules and learning materials on community-based rehabilitation program have to be developed in close coordination with the Municipal Health Officer and DOH,” he added.
He said that the DILG, as a member of the Rehabilitation and Reintegration Cluster of the Interagency Committee on Anti-Illegal Drugs (ICAD), pursuant to Executive Order No. 15 series of 2017, has been tasked to ensure the cooperation of LCEs and LGUs down to the barangay level on the implementation of community-based rehabilitation program.
He exemplified and lauded Quezon City Government’s efforts for the more than 500 surrenderers who ‘graduated’ from the local government’s community-based drug rehabilitation program last Saturday.
“I prod governors and mayors to do the same in saving lives of your constituents who are victims of illegal drug menace and thereby a hazard to their immediate family and community,” he said.
In August, DILG announced the activation of a Project Management Office (PMO) to synchronize the inter-agency efforts for the construction of Drug Abuse Treatment and Rehabilitation Centers (DATRCs) in the country, in line with Executive Order No. 4, series of 2016. ###
