BALANGA CITY — The Philippine Drug Enforcement Unit on Saturday declared Bataan and Aurora as drug-cleared provinces, the first two in Central Luzon, at the crowd-filled Bataan People’s Center here.
PDEA Region 3 director Lyndon Aspacio made the declaration witnessed by Usec Martin Dino of the Department of Interior and Local Government, PNP deputy chief for operations Lt. General Guillermo Eleazar, and PNP-3 director Brig. Gen. Rhodel Sermonia.
Gov. Albert Garcia received the plaque for Bataan while acting Gov. Christian Noveras, for Aurora. Bataan has 12 towns with 237 barangays while Aurora has eight towns with142 barangays.
“Sana magsisilbing inspirasyon at challenge sa ibang lalawigan. Kung nagawa ng Bataan at Aurora, walang rason na hindi natin ito magagawa,” Sermonia told other provincial police directors in Pampanga, Zambales, Bulacan, Tarlac and Nueva Ecija who were present in the declaration.
“Simbolo ito ng pakikiisa ng bawat miyembro o sektor ng ating lipunan,” he added.
Sermonia said that by February or March this year, Zambales will be declared as drug-cleared, adding that he was hoping that Nueva Ecija will follow. “We conduct relentless drug operations as directed by our regional director,” he said.
He said he will add police operatives in the cities of Angeles and Olongapo to intensify drug operations in the areas.
“Hindi tayo hihinto hanggang hindi natin nakakamtan ang tagumpay na magiging drugcleared ang buong Central Luzon. Makakamtan lang natin ito kung hindi tayo bibitaw,” Sermonia said.
Aspacio said that in 2016, Bataan was already drug-cleared but that it did not last and the problem on illegal drugs came back.
“This shows how complex the problem of illegal drugs is. Noon, medyo nangangapa pa tayo, hindi talagang nakikita ang mga tamang solusyon pero sa pagdaan ng panahon, nakita natin na hindi lang pala panay drug enforcement operation, yon tinatawag na supply reduction initiative, ang kailangan. Kailangan din natin ang demand reduction initiative at kasama ang pagbibigay ng panibagong pag-asa para sa nalululong sa droga,” the PDEA official said.
Eleazar noted that crimes against person like murder, homicide, physical injury and rape and other crimes like robbery, theft, carnapping in the first 42 months of the three and a half years from July 2016 to December 2019 of the Duterte administration dropped by 64 percent compared to the 42 months of the previous administration from January 2015 to June 2016.
Governor Garcia said the accomplishment of Bataan and Aurora was a hard feat that took many sectors to do.
Quoting from Eleazar, the governor said almost all crimes, especially index crimes, are related to illegal drugs: “Kung masusulusyunan ito, maraming krimen ang hindi na magaganap. Sa Bataan ligtas ang mamamayan dahil matahimik ang lugar. Kung tahimik, maraming investment, trabaho at development ang papasok.”
