THE City Government of Bacolod will start the construction of Balay Silangan in Barangay Singcang Airport after the election ban.
Executive Assistant Samuel Montoyo, point person of the City's anti-drug abuse campaign, said Thursday, April 11, that they temporarily stopped the implementation of the project because of the Commission on Elections' (Comelec) banning.
"After election period, we will start the project so we can start processing the declaration of a drug free barangay in Bacolod," he said.
He added the Balay Silangan has a total budget of P5 million.
Balay Silangan, the national drug reformation program, offers temporary refuge with the objection of reforming drug offenders into self-sufficient and law-abiding members of society.
Last year, the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) chose Bacolod City as one of the pilot sites of the Balay Silangan Reformation Program in the country.
Montoyo said the Balay Silangan will accommodate drug personalities selected for a three-month in-house reformation program.
Meanwhile, the City Government will also construct the P35 million Bacolod City Drug Treatment and Rehabilitation Center project in Barangay Alijis after the election ban.
In 2018, Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB) chairman Catalino Cuy led the ground-breaking rites of the drug rehabilitation facility at the City Government-owned lot at the City Agriculture Office Demo Farm in Barangay Alijis.
DDB already turned over the check worth P10 million to the City Government for the construction of the rehabilitation building. The remaining P25 million will be shouldered by the City Government.
The rehabilitation center will have an administration building, male and female quarters, multi-purpose and mess building and pavilion. It will be constructed with a bed capacity of 52 people.