All in-city housing beneficiaries and scholars of Navotas City government are drug-free, Mayor John Rey Tiangco announced on Friday.
“Don’t do drugs. That’s our number one rule for the beneficiaries of our housing and scholarship programs,” Tiangco said.
“Violation of this rule means losing the house or the scholarship,” he added.
Navotas has 1,018 in-city housing beneficiary-families and 720 students availing of the Navotas Polytechnic College (NPC) full scholarship program.
Applicants for both programs are required to take drug tests to qualify.
Once admitted into the program, they must also remain drug-free to prevent eviction or discontinuance of their scholarship.
Members of housing beneficiary-families aged 15 and above must take drug tests every three years. If they test positive, they are made to undergo rehabilitation.
The local government can also compel a family member to take a drug test at any time whenever he or she is suspected of using illegal substances.
Refusal to do so or testing positive thrice will require the family to give up their usufruct to the housing unit.
NPC students, on the other hand, need to pass the drug test, agree to do community service and submit other requirements before they could avail of the NPC Full Scholarship program.
“The requirement for our program beneficiaries to be tested has been in place for some years now,” Tiangco said.
Navotas police recently reported that crime incidence in the city has plummeted by more than 50 percent.