The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency said 53 public transport workers tested positive for illegal drug use based on the results of the “Oplan: Huli Week,” which was aimed at making travel to the provinces during Holy Week safe for passengers.
PDEA Director General Aaron Aquino said the results came from the drug test conducted on 7,729 transport workers, including bus drivers and conductors, in 89 major public transportation terminals nationwide.
Aquino said out of the 53 employees, 35 were bus drivers, 17 were bus conductors, and one was a dispatcher. They tested positive for the use of methamphetamine hydrochloride, or shabu.
Out of the total 7,729 public transport workers who were subjected to the drug tests, 4,460 are bus drivers, 2,727 are conductors, 18 inspectors, 26 dispatchers, nine canvassers, 29 van drivers, and 460 were other transport workers.
“We are also doing this to curb incidents of vehicular accidents caused by drugged drivers and to make the roads safer, especially this Lenten Season,” Aquino said.
The operation was implemented in accordance to the provisions of Republic Act 10586 (Anti-Drunk and Drugged Driving Act of 2013).
Aquino ordered the mandatory drug testing on drivers due to the increasing number of road traffic accidents blamed on drivers under the influence of illegal drugs.
Based on PDEA’s data monitoring from January 2018 to January 2019, 3,654 drivers, bus conductors, and dispatchers were arrested for violation of RA 9165 (Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002). In the second semester of 2018, 1,902 of them were arrested, an increase of 37 percent from the 1,386 arrests in the first semester.
Philippine Coast Guard units, meanwhile, are now on heightened alert as tens of thousands of passengers flock to ports nationwide for Holy Week. PNA
In its advisory, the PCG said there are a total of 53,740 outbound passengers in various ports across the country from 6 p.m. on April 15 to 12 a.m. on April 16.
Central Visayas (Region 7) had the most number of passengers with 11,691 at ports in Cebu, Bohol, Camotes Islands, and Southern Cebu.
A total of 8,571 outbound passengers were monitored in southeastern Mindanao, followed by Southern Tagalog at 8,445 and Northern Mindanao at 7,668.
A total of 5,921 passengers were monitored in Western Visayas, followed by Southern Visayas at 3,719, Bicol at 3,634, Eastern Visayas at 3,583 and Palawan at 508.
PCG personnel are also closely monitoring beaches, especially in known tourist destinations like Palawan, Boracay Island, Bohol, and Cebu where emergency response teams are on standby.
On Monday, the PCG—an attached agency of the Department of Transportation, monitored more than 97,000 outbound passengers in various ports nationwide.
The DOTr is implementing “Oplan Biyaheng Ayos: Semana Santa 2019” from April 8 to 25 to ensure a safe and convenient commuting experience for passengers who will troop to the ports, terminals and airports across the country.
Motorists have been advised to plan their trips to the provinces early to avoid heavy traffic as the volume of vehicles is expected to surge on Wednesday until the morning of Maundy Thursday in expressways due to the Holy Week break.
“We expect heavy traffic volume tomorrow afternoon. Most of our countrymen go to the provinces starting afternoon of Holy Wednesday until Maundy Thursday morning,” Robin Ignacio, traffic management and safety head of the North Luzon Expressway (NLEX) and Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway (SCTEX), said in a radio interview on Tuesday.
“We are projecting that traffic volume will increase by 10 percent,” he added.
The NLEX Corporation, which is in charge of the operations and maintenance of NLEX and SCTEX, is implementing a motorist assistance program during the Holy Week.
Around 700 tellers and patrol officers were deployed at the NLEX and SCTEX to enhance traffic management and toll collection services.
NLEX and SCTEX traffic management teams are adopting extended working hours from April 15 to 22 to monitor and manage the expected high volume of vehicles in Balintawak, Mindanao Avenue, Bocaue, Tarlac, San Miguel, and Tipo toll plazas.
Meanwhile, the management of the South Luzon Expressway (SLEX) reminded motorists to observe the speed limit being implemented along the expressway.
“We have speed cameras that will monitor the motorists. We have one of the highest incidents of over-speeding reported to the LTO because we are strict on implementing this,” SLEX spokesperson Tony Reyes said.
Both the NLEX and SLEX are implementing speed limits of 100 kilometers per hour for cars and other light vehicles, and 80 kph for trucks and buses.