HOUSE Bill No. 10744, introduced by Davao City First District Congressman Paolo "Pulong" Duterte, is seen as a deterrent to drug users or drug addicts aiming to run for a political position, this is the common view of some Dabawenyos interviewed by SunStar Davao.
Cong. Duterte filed the bill, "An act mandating elected and appointed officials of public offices, including the President of the Republic of the Philippines, to undergo random drug testing through hair follicle drug test every six months and institutionalizing voluntary random drug testing of candidates for electoral posts within 90 days prior the election day, amending for the purpose Republic Act No. 9165 or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002", which was received by the House of Representatives on Monday, August 12, 2024.
According to Rey Allesa, 29, hair follicle drug testing is the best drug test for every politician to undergo since for him, the results could not easily be cheated, unlike urine drug testing.
"Maayo kaayo ni para sa Pilipinas aron dili na daghan ang adik sa govberyo, aron limpyo, aron walay drug adik nga politiko (This is the best for the Philippines, so that there would not be many addicts in the government, so that we will have a clean government, and so that there would be no more drug addict politicians)," Allesa, who works as a security guard, said.
He said it is unfair since "lowly workers" like him had to undergo rigid drug tests just to be hired when it is those working in the government who should be the ones to be clean of illegal substances because they are the ones who are looked up to by the masses.
In his explanatory note, Cong. Duterte stated: "Being at the forefront of public service with the mandate towards integrity and modesty, it is imperative that public officials and government employees should be the very first to uphold such Constitutional mandate by submitting themselves towards accountability measures that serve as a tool in addressing the fulfillment of this mandate."
Duterte also cited a study by Palamar et al. that states "Hair testing does appear to be particularly efficacious and determinative in detecting unreported recent use of cocaine and/or oxycodone".
He added a study by DuPont & Baumgartnerin “Drug testing by urine and hair analysis: complementary features and scientific issues” in 1995, in which it stated that "the hair follicle test can detect the intensity or the quantitative result of usage of the person being tested within the ninety (90) days, in contrast with the Urine Drug Test which is needed to be conducted frequently, (at least once a week or more).
Meanwhile, Dr. Jed P. Acero, a professor at a well-known university in Davao City, said it is imperative for any individual who plans to run for government positions and those who are already sitting as officials to undergo a drug test, either through blood or through hair, since they are the ones who conceptualize and craft policies.
"Hence, drug testing should be studied and viewed as a prerequisite and/or requirement to make sure they are healthy, especially mentally. If our elected leaders are drug users, we could expect an unhealthy nation," Acero said.
Sunstar Davao is waiting for Cong. Duterte's comment on whether this bill is the answer to his father, former President Rodrigo Duterte's challenge for President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos to undergo a hair follicle drug test to prove the latter that he is not an "addict".