MAYOR Sebastian Duterte of Davao City has announced the dismissal of all 37 employees of the Davao City Public Safety and Security Office (PSSO) who tested positive during a random drug test.
During the ceremonial mass destruction of mufflers and confiscated blinkers at the Traffic Enforcement Unit (TEU) office in Ecoland, Davao City on Friday afternoon, May 31, 2024, Duterte stated, "Tanggal sila. I do not know kung unsa pa gyud desisyon namo ana karon. Syempre i-investigate gyud namo na. Dili lang ang CSU [Civil Security Unit]. Daghan man ta'g opisina or department nga nagahimo ta'g random drug test (They are removed. I do not know what our decision will be now. Of course, we will investigate it. It's not just the Civil Security Unit (CSU). We have many offices or departments that conduct random drug tests)."
The employees who tested positive during the drug tests conducted on May 3 and 13 at the Davao Recreation Center, also known as Almendras Gym, will be rehabilitated. Duterte, who recently declared war on illegal drugs, said the city is conducting regular drug testing.
He reminded employees not to engage in illegal drugs as it would affect their government employment status.
"Kabalo naman sila. It does nothing good to you at all. Kung naa ka sa gobyerno, ayaw sunuga ang sweldo sa mga tao sa mga ing-ana nga butang (They know. It does nothing good for you at all. If you are in the government, do not squander the salaries of people on such things)," he said.
City Anti-Drug Abuse Council (Cadac) action officer Jaffar Marohomsalic revealed that those who test positive can be subjected to the drug rehabilitation program, but it must be at their own expense to the government because it cannot be forced.
Those who tested positive also admitted to using illegal drugs.
PSSO Head Angel Sumagaysay expressed disappointment with the results and recommended to the City Mayor's Office to terminate those who tested positive. He underscored that they should not be employed by the government, especially since they are part of the security cluster.
Most of those who tested positive were CSU members. RGL, JPC with reports from Cheche Diabordo, KAMM Media Network