TALIÑO
POLICE Regional Office (PRO) 7 clarified that the barangays in Cebu Province which were declared by their respective police stations as drug-free, are still subject for validation.
PRO-7 director Chief Supt. Noli Taliño said that those reported 81 drug-free barangays are not yet final.
“I told them (Cebu Provincial Police Office) it’s for recommendation as drug-free barangay since it’s not yet final. It is still subject for validation,” Taliño said.
The statement of Taliño came after Cebu Provincial Anti-Drug Abuse Office (CPADAO) contradicts the declaration of CPPO that there were 81 drug-free barangays in the province.
Earlier, CPADAO chief Ivy Durano Meca said that it is the governor that has the authority to make such declaration and not the police.
She added that after a thorough validation by the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) and the Philippine National Police (PNP), the governor has to make the declaration.
And until now Governor Hilario Davide III has not yet declare any drug-free barangay in the province.
Across the province, 81 out of 1,066 barangays had been declared drug-free by their respective mayors, local police chiefs and Barangay Anti-Drug Advisory Councils (Badac) last month.
However, CCPO director Sen. Supt. Eric Noble earlier clarified that these barangays still have to undergo evaluation by PDEA-7 and CPADAO.