The filing of administrative and criminal charges against Barangay Ermita officials by the regional Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) should serve as a wake-up call to all barangay officials in Cebu City and in Metro Cebu for that matter.
Charged with neglect of duty and refusal to assist were Barangay Ermita Chairman Felicisimo Rupinta and every Barangay Ermita official for failing to assist the PDEA in a recent raid that yielded P14.8 million worth of shabu and resulted in the arrest of Melchor Ocarol, brother of Barangay Pasil councilman Romeo Ocarol.
While evidence had yet to be presented against these officials, and they denied the charges by saying that they offered their assistance to PDEA who promptly rejected it, it’s clear that police have some basis for doubting the commitment, even the capability of these barangay officials to stop illegal drug trafficking in their areas.
They may not be into drugs nor actively support and engage in the illegal drug trade, but officials like Rupinta can still be taken to task for allowing the illegal drug trade to proceed unabated and even to flourish through drug dens and shabu tiangges (flea markets) where drugs can be traded freely away from the security cameras.
So far, the most notorious drug hotspot in Cebu City remains to be Barangay Duljo-Fatima, home of the slain suspected drug lord Jeffrey “Jaguar” Diaz, and his funeral procession that was attended by hundreds of Duljo-Fatima residents is evidence of his hold and base of support in that barangay.
The deferment of this year’s barangay elections may mean business as usual for drug pushers in some Cebu City barangays whose officials either look the other way or discreetly protect these dealers.
But regional PDEA chief Yogi Filemon Ruiz’s latest disclosure that coastal barangays have seen a spike in illegal drug activities bears watching and should be immediately stopped which, based on his filing of charges against the Barangay Ermita officials, had been totally neglected.
We’re not even talking about reports that gambling dens are now being used to hide illegal drug activities, a development that has raised questions on the effectivity of the government’s brutal war on drugs which claimed more than 4,000 lives as of the latest count.
Even with the ongoing summary executions performed by so-called vigilantes or by drug syndicates willing to eliminate the competition and place the blame on overzealous cops, the illegal drug trade has shown no signs of slowing down and in fact had gone further underground.
The barangay officials may be quick to blame politicking as the reason behind being singled out by PDEA for the weak antidrug campaign in their barangays, but rather than continue to whine about it, they should prove beyond words to their constituents that they’re committed to rid their area of drug dealers and runners.