The local government unit (LGU) of Pasig City has been awarded P5 million by the Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB) for its balanced and holistic anti-drug campaign, Anti-Drug Abuse Council of Pasig (ADCOP) chief Zenaida Concepcion said Sunday.
Concepcion said the very proactive leadership of Mayor Vico Sotto was the reason why ADCOP was given P5 million by the DDB.
“Mayor Vico is very supportive to our anti-illegal drug programs. Due to this, are one of the local governments given P5 million funding by the DDB,” she said.
The P5 million awarded to ADCOP will be used for infrastructure development so its facility can be maximized for residents who need intervention on treatment and rehabilitation.
According to the ADCOP chief, drug surrenderees in the city are being sent to their partner drug rehabilitation facility in Bicutan, Taguig City.
"After their rehab, we prepare their families for their return. We don’t only prepare our surrenderees, it is equally vital to prepare the families to their reintegration for a better transition,” she explained.
The city is also conducting spiritual intervention among the surrenderees by partnering with spiritual sector, Concepcion said.
Surprise drug tests, according to her, are being conducted by villages in Pasig in order to ensure that they are no longer using illegal drugs.
As such, she said that some villages in the city have job placement programs for their reformed drug surrenderees.
The ADCOP chief said there are currently 64 drug surrenderees employed by some Pasig barangays, giving them dignity and security.
The barangay with the most number of employed reformed drug surrenderees with a total of 10, Conception noted, saying they recently commended the village for its outstanding job placement programs for drug surrenderees.
“Here in Pasig, we constantly check the conditions of our surrenderees and their families. Even during this pandemic, we still monitor them by asking them about their condition through text,” she said.
Of the 30 barangays in Pasig, Concepcion said 16 of their barangays have been declared drug-cleared by the DDB.