LMP head: It’s up to mayors to handle drug problems in their towns
THE involvement of some political and law enforcement figures in the illegal drug trade is “public knowledge” in some towns and cities in Cebu, a mayor said.
But Tuburan Mayor Democrito Diamante, president of the League of Municipalities of the Philippines (LMP) Cebu Chapter, said he hasn’t received reports of narcopolitics in the province.
He added that this hasn’t even been discussed in past LMP meetings.
Diamante said he was leaving the prerogative of addressing the illegal drug problem in the towns to the respective mayors.
“Each town has a different way of looking at the problem. It is up to the local chief executive how to solve it,” he told Cebu Daily News in a phone interview yesterday.
He said though that the league is willing to help mayors address the problem.
He said the league could organize an anti-illegal drug summit where problems can be discussed and solutions can be identified.
He, however, cited the difficulty of holding a summit because of the coming elections and the lack of budget for the event despite the financial aid from the Capitol
“But this doesn’t mean we will not be united in fighting the problem,” said Diamante.
He encouraged his fellow mayors and the police in the province to use the knowledge they have to apprehend “big” drug personalities in Cebu.
He also called on the Philippine National Police (PNP) and Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) to be “honest to goodness” in their work.
“We know who these people are, but why aren’t they arrested yet? Have them put under surveillance, conduct operations, put them in jail,” the mayor said.
Joey Herrera, executive director of the Cebu Provincial Anti-Illegal Drug Abuse Commission, said they have continued to urge police to watch their ranks.
Herrera, in a separate interview, said narcopolitics will not succeed if police officers and high-ranking officials aren’t involved in it.
The Cebu Provincial Police Office (CPPO) is represented in the CPADAC, as well as the LMP and the vice mayors’ league.
While mayors aren’t under the supervision of CPADAC, Herrera said they continue to encourage incumbent leaders to participate in the Capitol’s campaign against illegal drugs called the “Just Say No” program.
“We introduce them to the program and give out information materials that they can disseminate in their respective towns or cities,” he said.
Majority of the mayors in Cebu, he said, have been responsive to the call.
However, he said that there are also some who seem “cold.”
“Maybe they are not sold to the idea or they have other priorities. But this doesn’t mean they are involved in narcopolitics,” he said.
Meanwhile, San Fernando town Mayor Antonio Canoy downplayed the allegations that the drug problem has become rampant in his town.
Canoy also denied narcopolitics exists there.
“We do our best to address it (drug problem). Wala’y narcopolitics dinhi. Sa radyo ra na (There’s no narcopolitics here. It is only being broadcast on radio),” he said.
In a phone interview, Canoy said allegations of narcopolitics are mere politicking by his rivals.
“Ako kuno drug lord. Election na man. Gipamolitika ra na nila (They say I am a drug lord. It’s election time. This is mere politicking),” he said.
Canoy said the illegal drug problem is small in his town compared to those in other towns.
“Daghan mas grabe nga lungsod. Kumingking ra na ang amoa (There are other towns that are worse. Ours is just a small problem),” he said.
San Fernando town was put in the limelight after the National Bureau of Investigation in Central Visayas (NBI-7) and the police separately raided two suspected drug dens on January 26 and February 4, respectively.
San Fernando Police headed by Chief Insp. Richard Gadingan confiscated P2 million worth of shabu and some firearms during the raid on Thursday in the house of Castro Barameda in Barangay Bugho, San Fernando.
Seven suspected drug users were arrested.
Gadingan said the raid was part of their efforts to fight illegal drugs.
He agreed with Mayor Canoy that other towns have it worse than San Fernando.
“Wala man mi nagkulang sa among trabaho. We monitor. We also give feedback to our heads at the Cebu Provincial Police Office. We conduct thorough investigation and surveillance,” he told CDN.
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