CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY – A total of 1,416 barangays in the Northern Mindanao region have already been declared "drug-cleared," the Philippine National Police-Region 10 said on Wednesday, May 10.
These barangays from different provinces in the region were cleared from drugs after they met the parameters during the deliberation of the Regional Oversight Committee on Barangay Drug Clearing (ROCBDC) led by the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA).
The latest addition to the list were Barangays Poblacion in Malitbog, Barangay Diclum in Manolo Fortich, Barangay San Miguel in Maramag, Barangay Durian in San Fernando, and Barangay Kahaponan in Valencia City, all from Bukidnon; Barangay Pagayawan in Bacolod, Lanao del Norte; Barangay Dumarat in Balingasag, Barangay 21 and Barangay Tinulongan in Gingoog City, and Barangay Ulab in Gitagum, all from Misamis Oriental.
According to the Dangerous Drug Board, the parameters for declaring the drug-cleared status of drug-affected barangays include the non-availability of illegal drug supply, the absence of drug trans-shipment activity, clandestine drug laboratories, drug warehouses, chemical warehouses, marijuana cultivation sites, drug dens, dives or resorts, and the absence of drug pushers, drug users, and drug protectors.
The active involvement of barangay officials and Sangguniang Kabataan in the anti-illegal drug activities, as well as the existence of the anti-illegal drug-related programs, and the voluntary or compulsory drug treatment and rehabilitation processing desk, are also part of the parameters.
Police Major Joann Navarro, spokesperson of the Police Regional Office-10, said out of the two highly urbanized cities and five provinces in Northern Mindanao, only the province of Camiguin has been declared "drug-free."
The province with the second highest number of drug-cleared barangays is Misamis Occidental, with 88.72 percent. This was followed by Lanao del Norte with 85.90 percent, Bukidnon with 73.14 percent, Misamis Oriental with 65.35 percent, and Iligan City with 28.57 percent.
Cagayan de Oro City has the lowest percentage cleared at 19.72 percent. This means that there are only 14 drug-cleared barangays out of the 71 drug-affected barangays in the city.
Police Brig. Gen. Lawrence Coop, director of PRO-10, said the regional headquarters have been monitoring the remaining 453 drug-affected barangays in the region.
"We have the remaining 453 drug-affected barangays, and we are focusing on these to ensure that upon deliberation of the Oversight Committee, they will consider these (barangays) as drug-cleared," Coop said in a mix of English and Filipino in a statement released on Wednesday, May 10.
The PRO-10 assured strong coordination with PDEA and other law enforcement agencies to ensure continuous anti-illegal drug operations.
As a result, the regional police confiscated a total of P7.4 million worth of illegal drugs from a total of 203 drug operations conducted for the month of April this year. During those operations, a total of 248 drug suspects were arrested.
The PRO-10 has already tallied 1,503 arrested drug suspects since the assumption of Coop as director on Aug. 16, 2022 to April 30, 2023. There are also 38 suspects at large but the appropriate cases against them have already been filed.