PNP: Danao, Talisay have most drug personalities

CEBU, Philippines - The cities of Danao and Talisay have been tagged by the Provincial Anti-Illegal Drug Special Operation Task Group of the Cebu Provincial Police Office as having the most number of drug personalities in their watch list.

Based on records of the PAIDSOTG as March last year, there are 1,033 drug personalities, both pushers and users, in their watch list.

   Most of these people are from the component cities of Talisay and Danao.

Deputy Provincial Director for Operations and PAIDSOTG chief Teofilo Siclot said the two component cities serve as base where pushers can easily deliver their illegal drugs towards other towns in the northern and southern Cebu.

Siclot said they still don’t have another list for this year since there are still continuous operations against some of the personalities listed.

“Naay big time pushers nga ni-lie low nga naa sa watch list but naay wala sa list nga kusog ron, ang uban padayon ang monitoring,” Siclot told The FREEMAN.

Danao City acting police chief Chief Insp. Alvin Balio said he already disseminated information to the public about the target personalities for their possible arrests.

Balio, who assumed office two weeks ago added, he is now formulating possible techniques how to locate and arrest the suspects.

There are 42 barangays in Danao and barangay Poblacion, which is considered as the most progressive, serves as a hub of most drug pushers and users, the official said.

“As OIC pressure sad nga ang Danao has most drug-related cases but okay ra kay it is part of our job,” he told The FREEMAN.

Atty. Gloria Dalawampu, legal counsel of Danao City Mayor Ramon ‘Boy’ Durano Jr., said the drug problem has been there since the previous administrations. She even hinted that some of the drug personalities or protectors might be public officials.

“Si Mayor bag-o lang nilingkod but ang listahan ana gikan sa past administrations nga wala nila masulbad,” Dalawampu told The FREEMAN.

Talisay police acting chief Sr. Insp. Errol Francis Deveyra also said they are now conducting surveillance in some possible drug-hot spot areas.

Deveyra, who assumed office two months ago, added policemen are deployed at the Mananga bridge area after one policeman was killed last month. This place is one of the known havens of drug personalities.

He said they are still monitoring if possible drug personnel are still in their area of responsibility.

However, Talisay Mayor Socrates Fernandez refused to answer calls for he is attending a seminar in Agusan del Sur.

The acting Talisay police chief said that the drugs being distributed in there come from Cebu City. He said that he has also been informed that some drugs come from Ozamis City and Manila.

Siclot said the intelligence community will choose who will be added and who will be taken away from the list.

 A Provincial Anti-Illegal Drug Task Force will soon be created and chaired by Cebu Provincial Councilors League President Carmen Remedios Meca. —(FREEMAN)