CREATION OF ANTI-DRUG ABUSE COUNCIL OFFICE PROPOSED

LAUDS. City Prosecutor Joven Maramba praises the Dagupan City's Anti-Drug Abuse Council and the City's police on their campaign against illegal drugs. During the anti-drug abuse council meeting held today at the Stadia, Prosecutor Maramba presented records from the City Prosecutor's Office which showed that the Dagupan cops have been very active in filing cases involving anti-illegal drugs. Mayor Belen Fernandez said that since she became the city's mayor in 2013 around 500 narcotic related cases have been filed at the Prosecutor's Office by the police.

DAGUPAN CITY--The city government was urged to create a permanent office that will run and plan the activities of the City Anti-Drug Abuse Council (CADAC) under the Office of the City Mayor in a bid to strengthen the campaign against drug abuse and hasten the realization of the dream to have a drug-free Dagupan.

This was the call made by members of non-government organizations, heads of universities and colleges and officials of schools during the first meeting of the reorganized City Anti-Drug Abuse Council (CADAC) presided over by Mayor Belen T. Fernandez at CSI Stadia on August 2.

Lawyer Lemuel Astadan, a member of the CADAC, called the attention of the city government and the members of the city council represented by Councilors Jose Netu Tamayo, chairman Committee on Peace and Order and Marcelino Fernandez, Liga ng mga Barangay president, to enact an ordinance creating a permanent CADAC office that will serve as the city’s implementing agency in charge with the implementation of all anti-drug abuse programs of the city.

“It is important that we focus all our efforts on anti-drug abuse into one office which will be responsible in implementing the policies being adopted by the City Anti-Drug Abuse Council and to coordinate all efforts of the different sectors so that we will have a single line of program in our war against drug,” said Astadan.

Astadan insisted it is important that the city will have a continuing program on anti-drugs regardless on who is the President of the Philippines and the city mayor of Dagupan.

“We need to have an outstanding program about anti-drugs regardless on who will be the next president or the next city mayor because we have an office that is running the show. And we can entrust that office with administrative and operational powers," he added.

"Sila yung magcocoordinate ng mga advocacies of the different sectors, with the police and with the judicial bodies. In that, we can see that the war against drugs in our city will be centralized," said Astadan.

Astadan, along with the 7th Day Adventist, is an advocate of the campaign for SAD Free Dagupan that wages comprehensive war against smoking, alcohol and drugs.

“We believe that once a child learns how to smoke and drink liquor, the tendency is for the child to try drugs. This is what we want to prevent as part of our advocacy,” Astadan stated.

Colleges and universities also proposed the holding of a summit not only for high school students but also for college students while the Church promised to help provide alternative livelihood programs for drug pushers but urged the city to conduct more seminars to "touch their souls to help them keep away from drugs" . (Joseph C. Bacani/CIO/Aug. 2, 2016)