New initiatives for war on drugs

THE war on drugs in Pangasinan is levelling up with yet another approach that will surely impact on efforts to keep our families safe, thanks to the announced plans of the Pangasinan Police Provincial Office, headed today by P/Colonel Rederico Maranan as provincial director.

Instead of relying solely on buy-bust operations and serving of search and arrest warrants to neutralize illegal drugs operations, the planned initiatives for prevention are timely and necessary such as: a) To subject Senior High students to random drug testing, 2) To urge government offices and private sector to require drug tests as a prerequisite for employment and 3) To establish Barangay Drug Rehabilitation Desks in seriously drug-affected barangays in the province.

While we have no details of the operating guidelines, the preventive nature of the proposed courses of action is obvious. These may not have the same impact as the Double Barrel (tokhang) policy implemented in 2017, but these come close to the desired results.

Oplan Tokhang was effective because the drug offenders were told that the government was aware of their activities and their habits, and that if they voluntarily seek to reform themselves, the government would arrest and charge them in court. That clearly meant detention. The result? Millions came forward to opt for volunteer rehab! Alas, it had to stop.

We believe that if the proposed plans are allowed to proceed without as much interference from bleeding hearts in our midst, we can again see a resurgence of drug personalities coming forward to be rehabilitated, a situation that would reduce the demand for illegal drugs. 

‘I will kill you’

IF there was one shining moment in President Duterte’s State Of the Nation Address (SONA) on July 22, it was his emphatic resolve again to rid the government of corruption. That was his No. 1 promise during the 2016 presidential campaign, with his war on drugs coming in a strong second.  That was also his spin when he took his oath of office in June 2016.  In his SONA, he singled out the BIR, Pag-IBIG, LTO, SSS and LRA as the most corrupt-laden branches of our bureaucracy. Mr. Duterte said he was so “exasperated” at the way they had been dealing with the public, forcing him to warn the leaders of the five agencies:  “If you don’t change your ways, I will kill you!” 

Of course, he doesn’t mean it. But for the President to say that, he really means business.  The President’s advice for the rogues to ease up man-made complications in their territories: “Simplify matters.”  In short, shape up or ship out. 

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