In a statement, Santo Tomas Mayor Ernesto Evangelista said the DILG report indicates that efforts to curb the illegal drug trade and implement the government’s anti-illegal drug campaign were too little and slow.
Evangelista disclosed the information in a virtual gathering of 2,500 Tomasino civic, church and youth leaders via Zoom on Monday (Jan 3), to apprise the public of the government’s war on illegal drugs. Evangelista expressed concern over the DILG report which shows the Barangay Drug Affectation and Drug Cleared Barangays in the Municipality of Santo Tomas.
“Daghan dapat usbon sa Barangay Kimamon kay pila katuig nagpabilin gihapon kining drug-infested sukad 2019 hangtud 2021. Repleksyon kini sa kung unsa klaseng liderato diha sa mismong barangay. Dili nato makab-ot ang atong pangandoy na mahimong malinawon ug drug-free ang mismong barangay kung pakyas kini sa pag-implementar sa mga programa sa gobyerno sama aning war on drugs ni President Duterte,” Evangelista told the audience virtually.
The mayor said he acknowledged that it was indeed a herculian task to eradicate the drug problem in Santo Tomas but his administration employed a “whole of government approach” in dealing with the illegal drug trade in Santo Tomas in order to liberate the Tomasinos from the ill effects of the illegal drugs.
Evangelista said he posed a challenge to Punong Barangay Deofel Sese Rollan to make Barangay Kimamon a drug-cleared barangay in 2022.
“Kung seryoso si Kapitan Rollan sa iyang kampanya bahin sa illegal na druga. Dapat makit-an sa iyang pagdumala diha mismo sa iyang barangay. Tataw kaayo ang nahimong resulta sa iyang liderato sulod sa tulo ka tuig. Maka-alarma ang mismong DILG report kay halos walay nahimong konkretong aksyon para mahimong drug-cleared ang mismong barangay,” he said.
The mayor said the challenge he posed to Rollan was a call that he would double his efforts to show that he was serious in implementing the government’s campaign against illegal drugs.
“Katungod sa katawhan na mahibal-an kung kinsa ang mga politiko na committed sa drug-free governance. Ang buhat ug ang opisyal na mga report gikan sa government agencies ang atong pa-istoryahon. Kay karong panahuna, daghan bakak ug mga imbento na istorya ang nagagawas. Dili kita mu-undang og pagawas kung unsa ang kamatuoran kay katungod sa katawhan mahibalu-an ang tama ug sakto na impormasyon,” he said.
However, Evangelista still thanked the barangay officials and community members from Barangay Kimamon who have been very cooperative in providing the law enforcement agencies with useful information, despite the DILG report
The mayor said that his administration is working collaboratively with the PNP, PDEA and NBI to address the drug problem here.
Earlier, Evangelista said that he is willing to undergo a drug test voluntarily using hair follicles instead of the usual urine so that Tomasinos may know who among political leaders are clean and serious in addressing the illegal drug problem in Santo Tomas.
“Mas maayo siguro na ang tanang Kapitan atong ipa-drug test kay para masayran kung seryoso ba sila sa campaign against illegal drug,” he said.
Meanwhile, thr DILG-PDEA on December 23, 2021 cleared six barangays from the influence of drugs namely: Barangays New Visayas, Esperanza, San Miguel, Talomo, Salvacion, and San Vicente.
Municipal Administrator lawyer Elisa Evangelista-Lapiña said while Barangay New Katipunan, Casig-ang, Tibal-og, La Libertad, Kinamayan, and Bobongon were still under the “moderately drug affected” category based on the DILG-PDEA list as of December 2021.
“We congratulate the six barangays for having been cleared from illegal drugs. This goes to show that their efforts to eliminate the selling and using of prohibited drugs,by urging users and pushers to mend their ways and stop getting involved in illegal activities really paid off,” she said.
She noted that the drug-cleared barangays apparently showed that a “concerted effort” of the municipal government and barangay local government was crucial to eliminate the prohibited drugs across the municipality of Santo Tomas.
The municipal administrator said that the illegal drug presence in the town would continue if the barangay and the community itself wouldn’t cooperate.
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