Give recovering drug dependents a chance to have decent jobs

TAKE COURAGE GET UP/OCT.28,2018:Fe Mantuhac-Barino Surrender to God (SuGod) and leaders of various initiatives on drug addiction recovery convened at the IEC Convention Center for the third month of Be Intimate with God (BIG) DAY.(CDN PHOTO/LITO TECSON)

Leaders of drug dependent rehabilitation initiatives in Cebu appealed to the business sector to consider employing recovering drug dependents who have undergone and completed rehabilitation programs.

Fe Barino, chairperson of the Commission on the Laity of the Archdiocese of Cebu, said the success of their initiatives to help drug dependents is not the number of recovering drug dependents that graduated from their programs but the quality of life after the program.

Barino said the stigma of being a former drug dependent may hinder them from completely recovering from their addiction.

“Kami naningkamot mi (We are trying) to help these people, but we also need the understanding and help of the private sector para sa ilang trust,” Barino said.

“They (drug recoverers) are also human beings like us. Duna silay mga panginahanglan (They have needs.). Basta we make sure lang nga niagi gyod sila og klaro nga intervention (As long as we make sure that they underwent quality intervention,” she added.

The Commission on the Laity (COL) is one of the forefront organizations that organize community-based treatment programs. The organization Surrender to God (SuGod), which celebrated its first anniversary last August, is one of the commission’s efforts to help rehabilitate drug dependents.

The commission is also spearheading the monthly Be Intimate with God (BIG) Day, a prayer and fellowship program for recovering drug dependents.
Barino also said that business owners should foster drug awareness among their employees through education and aftercare or the monitoring of their recovering drug dependent employees.

BIG Day
During the third BIG Day celebration organized by the COL and the charismatic community last Sunday, representatives of drug recovery facilities and initiatives gathered to “give voice that there is hope for
recovering drug dependents.”

“Many people are suffering addiction in silence because they do not know nga dunay mga private rehabilitation centers ug recovery fellowships nga pwede gyod nga maadtuan. So we want to tell them nga naa ta to spread the good news about addiction recovery,” Barino said.

Barino also called on the government to tap the private rehabilitation centers to accommodate more drug surrenderers who want to be rehabilitated.

Amid the spate of killings in Cebu, Barino added that disrespecting the sanctity of life is not the answer to the problem on illegal drugs faced by the country.

“Everyday nalang naay patay. Mura ba og mao na lang gyod na ang solution nga masulbad ang problema nato sa drugas. I thought of calling these people in the recovery circle to bring and spread the good news that duna tay gibuhat nga mga initiatives sa lain-lain nga mga organizations alang sa pagtabang sa atong mga drug dependents,” she said.

Ray Nobleza, a representative of the Safe Haven Recovery, said that although the chance of a relapse among the drug dependents cannot be discounted, giving recovering drug dependents the choice of submitting themselves to rehabilitation is already a leap towards a eradicating drug dependence in the country.

“If I am a drug dependent and I do not know that I can change, I don’t have any option but to continue using drugs. But merely knowing that there is a chance for me to be rehabilitated, I now have the choice to keep ruining my life or to pursue recovering,” Nobleza said.