Montejo: PRO-7 ‘winning’ in fight vs illegal drugs

Drug-cleared status given to 14 brgys is a step to having a safer community

Police Brigadier General Ronnie Montejo | CDND file photo

CEBU CITY, Philippines — The fight against illegal drugs is far from over.

But Police Brigadier General Ronnie Montejo, director of the Police Regional Office in Central Visayas (PRO-7), said that the giving of a drug-cleared status to 14 barangays here is an indication that they are winning in their fight.

Of the 14 barangays, 11 are located in Cebu province, two in Cebu City and one in the neighboring Bohol province.

Montejo agreed with the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) that cooperation with the concerned sectors is key in the success of the government’s war on drugs.

READ: PDEA-7: Cooperation made drug clearing of 2 barangays in Cebu City possible

This was also the reason for the declaration of Barangays Sudlon 1 and Sto. Niño in Cebu City as drug-cleared barangays.

He said that having drug-cleared barangays is a step towards having a safer community.  The presence of drug personalities is a major contributor to crime occurrence.

READ: 2 barangays in Cebu City now drug-cleared

Montejo is asking other local government units in Central Visayas to also step up their anti-drugs campaign.

He said that the war against illegal drugs will remain a top priority while he remains as PRO-7 director and their campaign will not only focus on educating the youth against the ill-effects of drugs use but will also include adults especially the parents.

READ: Central Visayas has new police director

Drop in Crime Rate

The Cebu City Police Office Intelligence Unit recorded at least 650 anti-drug operations made from January 1 to May 18, 2021 which resulted to the arrest of 793 drug personalities.

Police Lieutenant Colonel Randy Caballes earlier reported a dropped in the local supply of shabu as they intensify their anti-drugs campaign.

Meanwhile, Police Colonel Engelbert Soriano, director of the Cebu Police Provincial Office (CPPO), also reported a drop in the crime rate in the province this year.

Soriano said they only recorded 5,882 crimes from January 1 to May 18 compared to the 7,156 incidents recorded during the same period last year.

He said that index crime also dropped  by almost half from 1,038 last year to only 552 this year.

Index crimes include murder, homicide, physical injury, robbery, and rape.

Soriano said non-index crimes also dropped from 3,886 during the first quarter of 2020 to 2,879 during the same period this year.

Non-index crimes are violations of special laws such as sexual offenses, fraud, embezzlement, and other violations of local ordinances. / dcb