Eastern Visayas anti-drug war nets more than 18,000 pushers, users

PALO, Leyte, Aug. 23 (PNA) -- Barely two months of relentless drive against anti-illegal drugs, the Philippine National Police (PNP) regional office here has documented 16,583 illegal drug users and 2,107 pushers for a total of 18,690 who have surrendered as of Aug. 18, 2016.

Of the 16,583 drug personalities, 5,609 were from Leyte, 4,449 from Southern Leyte, 547 from Biliran, 1,121 from Samar, 2,685 from Eastern Samar, 1,205 from Northern Samar, 2,089 from Ormoc City, and 985 from Tacloban City.

Chief Supt. Elmer Beltejar, acting PNP Eastern Visayas regional director is expecting more drug personalities to surrender with the full implementation of “Project Tokhang” in the region.

“The large number of drug personalities who surrendered is a tangible proof that the use of illegal drugs is already widespread in the region and has reached all strata of the society,” Beltejar said.

In line with this program, Beltejar is determined to sustain activities and programs to further educate and rehabilitate illegal drug personalities, who surrendered in every police station in collaboration with stakeholders and other government agencies.

The rehabilitation program of the PNP has two phases. The first phase is the education drive in the different elementary and secondary schools to edify them the ill effects of drugs and learn how to say “No to Drugs.”

The second phase is the six-month rehabilitation phase. The first three months will focus on character development to help drug dependents to recover from drug-free mindset.

They will be attending psychological and psychotherapeutic processing sessions or any available treatment that concerned agencies may have to offer. The last three months will concentrate on skills trainings and livelihood development in coordination with the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) and other stakeholders.

Beltejar said the police regional office will continue in the conduct of anti-illegal drugs operations and will have no let-up in eradicating both the use and trade of illegal drugs in the region.

Likewise, PNP Eastern Visayas asked the public to fully support and trust the police while it continues to get rid of the scalawags in the police service.

It also encourages the general public to support the police in the campaign against illegal drugs and provide relevant information immediately to the nearest police stations or through social media. (PNA)

FPV/SQM/PNP-PR/EGR