CAPITOL NEWS

LINGAYEN– All local government units (LGUs) shall have an allocation for anti-illegal drugs campaign.

Thus advised Governor Amado Espino Jr. as he presided over the joint meeting of the Provincial Peace and Order Council (PPOC) and Provincial Anti-Drug Abuse Council (PADAC), held at the Provincial Disaster and Risk Reduction Management Council (PDRRMC) Conference Hall within Narciso Ramos Sports and Civic Center in Lingayen, last January 28.

Gov. Espino said he has already conveyed to the LGUs, from towns down to barangays, to include in their respective appropriations a certain budget for the campaign versus illegal drugs.

Otherwise, he noted, the budget proposal shall not be approved by the provincial board.

For the towns, whose budget for the year 2015 has been approved earlier, the Governor said they must include the allocation for illegal drugs campaign in their supplemental budget.

Joint PPOC, PADAC meeting. Governor and Provincial Peace and Order Council (PPOC) Chairman Amado T. Espino, Jr. (center) urges local government units to allocate a portion of their annual budget for anti-illegal drugs campaign even as he assured them that the provincial government will provide necessary support during the Joint PPOC and Provincial Anti-Drug Abuse Council (PADAC) 1st Quarter Meeting at the Pangasinan Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council conference room in Lingayen last January 28. Also in photo are (from left): Col. Nick Alarcio, Liga ng mga Barangay President and PADAC Chairman Amado “Pogi” Espino, III, Vice Gov. Jose Ferdinand Z. Calimlim, Jr., DILG Acting Provincial Director Reggie Colisao, PDEA Regional Dir. Adrian Albarino and PNP OIC-Provincial Dir. Reynaldo Biay. /MVS

Further, Gov. Espino vowed that the provincial government will provide necessary support to the LGUs, particularly to the barangays which have meager budget.

He noted that for the campaign to be effective, it has to be provided with resources.

The provincial government has allotted at least .5% of the provincial budget for anti-drugs campaign.

He said his recent advisory is part of their intensified campaign against illegal drugs, which he dubbed the biggest problem of the country, next to poverty.

Gov. Espino, an author of the Republic Act 9165 or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act when he was still a congressman, noted the problem is being worsened by the fact that price of illegal drugs in the province is cheaper than in other provinces.

As Superintendent Benjamin Ariola, chief of the operations and plans branch of the Pangasinan Provincial Police Office earlier reported, the price of illegal drugs in Pangasinan range from P2,500-3,000, cheaper than other provinces in the region.

According to the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) Region 1, source of shabu in Pangasinan is reportedly from the National Capital Region and Cavite while the marijuana is reportedly coming from the Cordillera Administrative Region.

“Family members of drug addicts are not reporting their kin to the proper authorities,” the Governor also cited as another challenge in the fight versus drugs.

Last December, the provincial government steered thousands of concerned citizens to help in the fight during the Pangasinan Anti-Illegal Drugs Summit.

Meanwhile, Board Member and Liga ng mga Barangay (LNB) provincial president Amado ‘Pogi’ Espino III authored a resolution passed during the Sangguniang Panlalawigan regular session on November 10, 2014 to organize or reactivate the Barangay Anti-Drug Abuse Council (BADAC) in all 1,333 barangays in the province.

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