THE Bacolod City Anti-Drug Abuse Council (Cadac) will recommend 11 more villages to the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA)-Western Visayas to be declared as "drug cleared" in the city.

Executive Assistant Samuel Montoyo, focal person of Cadac, said on Thursday, January 9, they will submit the list of the 11 barangays to the Regional Oversight Committee on February 2020.

These are Barangays 4, 6, 13, 21, 23, 25, 32, 41, Pahanocoy and Mandalagan.

Montoyo said they are now preparing the documents for the validation of the oversight committee.

He said in 2019, of the 11 barangays, some of them were already validated by the oversight committee but failed to qualify to be declared as "drug cleared."

"These 11 barangays have no reported drug bust operations or drug surrenderee in the previous months within their areas of jurisdiction," the Cadac official said.

The Regional Oversight Committee and PDEA earlier declared Barangay 5, headed by Barangay Captain Raymundo Salaveria; Barangay 15, headed by Barangay Captain Anthony Ayco; Barangay 17, headed by Barangya Captain Rogelio Pabiana; Barangay 18, headed by Barangay Captain Madeline Diaz; Barangay 24, headed by Barangay Captain Leif Gregory Ledesma; Barangay 33, headed by Barangay Captain John Malayang; Barangay 37, headed by Barangay Captain Adrian Garrucho; and Barangay 38, headed by Barangay Captain Gener Agpalo as "drug cleared" villages.

"Our village chiefs are really interested to be declared as 'drug cleared' barangays," Montoyo said, adding village chiefs are also cooperating with police operatives to eliminate illegal drugs within their areas of jurisdiction.

Bacolod City Police Office (BCPO) records showed from January 1 to December 31, 2019, the operatives confiscated a total of 6,083.026 grams of shabu with an estimated market value of P72,996,312, and 152.8139 grams of marijuana with an estimated market value of P35,147.20.

BCPO also arrested a total of 111 high-value targets, 115 street-level targets, 20 minors and 715 newly identified drug suspects.