Sinas reminds cops of consequences if caught using illegal drugs

Police Brigadier General Debold Sinas, the director of the Police Regional Office in Central Visayas. CDN Digital photo | Alven Marie A. Timtim

CEBU CITY, Philippines — Police officers will face administrative charges and be terminated from service if they will fail the random drug tests for law enforcers and be proven to have used illegal drugs.

Police Brigadier General Debold Sinas again gave this warning to police officers about the consequences they would face if they would be caught using illegal drugs.

Sinas also assured that these police officers would be given due process and if found guilty of using illegal drugs would be terminated from police service.

Sinas said that he was happy that police officers of the Drug Enforcement Unit in the three cities of Metro Cebu were found negative in the drug tests last month.

These police officers were from the cities of Cebu, Mandaue and Lapu-Lapu.

However, early last month, a Cebu City police officer was caught selling illegal drugs on the side. This prompted a revamp of the Cebu City Police Drug Enforcement Units recommended by Police Colonel Royina Garma, Cebu City Police Office chief, which Sinas approved.

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With these developments, surprise drug tests for police officers continued to be conducted, which resulted to two police officers failing the tests and were found positive of using illegal drugs in the confirmatory tests.

Sinas said he was disappointed at these two police officers.

He said the police officer from Negros Oriental failed in the June tests while a police officer assigned in Mandaue City did not pass the May drug tests and their confirmatory tests showed that they indeed had used illegal drugs.

Both police officers have been disarmed of their service firearms, have been relieved from their posts, and have been reassigned to the Regional Personnel Holding Administration Unit in Central Visayas (RPHAU-7) where they await being heard by the Regional Internal Affairs Service (RIAS).

Both would also be facing grave misconduct cases.

He said he was disappointed at these police officers that despite his efforts to remind them about their campaign on illegal drugs, there were still men in uniform who would use drugs.

Sinas said that the random drug tests for police officers would continue to make sure that the police officers, who would be implementing the drive against illegal drugs, would not use illegal drugs./dbs