Two barangays in Navotas on Monday received certification from the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency that they are now drug-free.
Mayor John Rey Tiangco, together with Brgy. Captains Zenaida Tibulan of North Bay Boulevard South Dagat-dagatan and Rochelle Vicencio of Tanza II, received the certificates from Rhea Valenzuela of PDEA-National Capital Region.
“All of us must fight against illegal drugs. This is not just to promote peace and order in our city; this is to secure a safe future our children,” Tiangco said.
The mayor urged Navoteños to continue to support the city government’s anti-drug campaign.
The city often receives reports about illegal activities through Text JRT numbers 0915-2601385 for Globe, 0908-8868578 for Smart, and 0922-8888578 for Sun.
“We are grateful for your reports. Your cooperation is crucial for the success of our campaign,” he added.
A barangay is considered drug-free when it has zero drug supply, drug den, pushers, users, and drug laboratory, per government guidelines.
It also needs to have barangay officials who are actively advocating for anti-drug activities; a drug awareness, preventive education and information, and a voluntary and compulsory drug treatment and rehabilitation processing desk.
Navotas conducts a community-based treatment and rehabilitation program called Bidahan for drug users willing to change their ways.
Bidahan participants initially undergo a 3-day retreat where they learn about the effects of drugs in their body and ways to avoid getting hooked into substance abuse.
They then engage in twice a week counseling sessions for six months.
Bidas, as the participants are called, undergo random drug testing to check their faithfulness to the program.
Since it started in October 2016, the Bidahan now has 20 batches composed of 527 participants. Of this, 98 have completed the 6-month rehab program and seven have finished the 18-month aftercare treatment.