Police declare 9 of 142 QC barangays ‘drug-cleared’

Small victories in a big city: Of 142 barangays, Quezon City has finally been able to declare nine clear of illegal drugs. Mayor Herbert Bautista, however, sees some points for improvement in the parameters used to classify the affected areas.

In an awarding ceremony led by the Quezon City Anti-Drug Abuse Advisory Council at city hall on Monday, Barangays Damar, West Triangle, Blue Ridge B, Libis, Quirino 3B (Claro), Mangga, Valencia, Horseshoe and Kalusugan were declared “drug-cleared” by the Quezon City police as certified by the Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB).

DDB Regulation No. 2, Series of 2016, dated Aug. 3, 2016, defines “drug-cleared barangays” as “previously drug-affected and subjected to drug-clearing operations, and declared free from any illegal drug activities” under parameters set out by DDB Regulation No. 2, Series of 2007.

A “drug-cleared” status means that authorities have validated the nonavailability of narcotics supplies in the barangay, and the absence of drug transit or transshipment activities, clandestine illegal drugs laboratories, clandestine illegal drugs warehouses, clandestine chemical warehouses, marijuana cultivation sites, illegal drug dens, dives, or resorts; and the absence of illegal drug pushers, users, dependents, protectors, coddlers and financiers.

Quezon City police director Chief Supt. Guillermo Lorenzo Eleazar had admitted that all 142 barangays of Quezon City, under these parameters, were previously considered “drug-affected:” 14 were seriously-affected, including the nine which were cleared. Sixty were moderately affected while 68 were slightly affected.

Mayor Herbert Bautista appealed to the DDB “to make some changes in the determination of what a drug-affected barangay is,” especially for highly urbanized cities.

“Just one suspect, just one accused, and a barangay is already considered drug-affected. If we can change that policy, the number of drug-affected barangays may decrease. It does not mean, of course, that the campaign against illegal drugs will not continue,” he said.