THE Abellana police are searching for minors who were seen sniffing solvent inside a public utility jeepney (PUJ) with route number 17B.
Police Major Mark Don Alfred Leanza, chief of Abellana Police Station 2, said they got in touch with the barangay where the minor offenders reside because they do not know who their parents are.
The Abellana police are also coordinating with a netizen who posted a video on social media showing the minors getting inside a PUJ that was going to downtown Cebu City, while smelling solvent placed inside a cellophane.
Leanza said they are trying to determine the exact time and place of the occurrence because the overpass near Robinsons Place on Osmeña Boulevard was mentioned in a social media post, but it had already been demolished.
Leanza made it clear that their station often rescues and turns over stray children to the barangay where they live.
"Actually, kining atung concern regarding sa mga batan-on nga gagamit og kining plastic bag nga gibutang ang illegal substance is ato na ning daily nga gina rescue sa atoang area. Naa man sad ta after activity report ani together with photos and documentations nga gi rescue nato ni sila and i-turn over sa barangay concerned. These personalities nga naa sa video karon mga bag-o ning mga bataa diri sa atoang area kay kining mga daan is na rescue naman nato," Leanza said.
(Since we regularly rescue minors in our jurisdiction, these kids who use plastic bags with illicit substances are currently our concern. We have an after activity report about them, along with the photos and documentations that we rescued them and turned them over to the barangays where they reside. These personalities in the video are novices because the older ones have already been rescued by us.)
Last Tuesday night, April 9, 2024, another group of young people was saved by the Abellana police and handed over to barangays Sambag 2 and Pasil.
Following the incident, Cebu City Councilor Philip Zafra plans to enact a legislation that would penalize rugby boys and their neglectful parents.
Zafra had instructed the Department of Social Welfare and Services (DSWS) to pursue the children in an effort to identify their parents.
“Atong gitahasan atong DSWS nga i-trace ning mga bataa. Sutaon nato sila kay gusto nato mahibaw-an sad even ang mga ginikanan ani," Zafra said.
(We tasked the DSWS to locate these kids. We want to know who their parents are.) (AYB, TPT)
