THE Inter-Agency Committee on Anti-Illegal Drugs (Icad) has declared the Talisay City Jail in Cebu, including its male and female dormitories, as a drug-free detention facility.
The announcement elated the Talisay City Government, including Mayor Gerald Anthony Gullas Jr.
Gullas, a freshman local executive, said the declaration shows the seriousness of President Rodrigo Duterte’s campaign against illegal drugs.
The Talisay City Jail was among the 10 jail facilities in Central Visayas that the Icad declared as drug-free on Thursday, Dec. 19, 2019.
The female dormitories of the jails in the cities of Mandaue, Cebu and Lapu-Lapu also obtained drug-free statuses.
Also declared drug-free were the city jail of Tagbilaran in Bohol; the municipal jails of Balamban, Consolacion and Minglanilla in Cebu; and district jails of Bayawan City in Negros Oriental and Siquijor.
During the Icad’s second deliberation for this year, the members found out that the 10 jails were able to conduct three consecutive greyhound operations. During the searches not a single contraband, including illegal drugs, was found.
Also, none of the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) 7 personnel tested positive for drug use. Twenty percent of the inmates were also clean.
For its part, the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) 7 reported that none of the drug personalities detained at the Talisay City Jail continue to engage in drug trafficking. The Icad was established by Executive Order 15 signed by President Duterte. It is chaired by the PDEA director general and composed of 42 government agencies. Some Icad members are the BJMP, Department of the Interior and Local Government, Department of Health, Department of Justice, Department of Social Welfare and Development, Philippine National Police and the National Bureau of Investigation.
At the Talisay City Jail, 80 percent of the 1,200 male inmates had a history with illegal drugs.
Gullas thanked Talisay City Jail Warden Crisyrel Awe and City Councilor Gail Restauro, who chaired the committee on peace and order, for their efforts. (FMD / RSR)