THE Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) in Western Visayas is validating the names of 26 barangay officials in Negros Occidental and Bacolod City who were allegedly linked to illegal drugs.
PDEA-Western Visayas Director Wardley Getalla, in an interview with Aksyon Radyo Bacolod, said they are currently verifying reports about the alleged drug links of three village chiefs and 21 councilmen in the province, and two other councilmen in the city.
Getalla said most of them were reported to be drug users, while others were protectors and pushers.
"We are fast-tracking the validation to really check if those public officials are involved in illegal drugs," Getalla said.
On April 30, PDEA released the list of barangay captains and councilmen involved in the illegal drug trade upon the instruction of President Rodrigo Duterte.
The narco-list included only one barangay official in Western Visayas, a village chief from Iloilo City.
Getalla said the national agency will release another narco-list but they have yet to know when.
He said they are still checking the accuracy of the information and determining if there will be additional barangay officials who will be included in their list.
Meanwhile, Getalla advised the public to never choose or vote for a candidate whom they know is involved in any illegal activity, particularly illegal drugs.
He urged the public to help them address the drug menace in the society by reporting to authorities any information they know.
Getalla warned erring public officials that if they will be proven guilty of the offense, they will be included in the watchlist of PDEA and will be subjected for police operation.
He also said that no barangays in the city and in the province have been cleared from illegal drugs, based on the new set of guidelines of PDEA.
Three barangays were previously declared drug-free in Bacolod City, but Getalla said the city will again submit and comply with the new guidelines to attain such declaration.
The cities of Silay and Kabankalan, as well as the Pulupandan town are active in complying with the requirements for the declaration of drug-cleared barangays in their respective areas, he added.