1.7 million Pinoys addicted to dangerous drugs

MANILA, Philippines - About 1.7 million Filipinos are addicted to shabu, marijuana, and other dangerous drugs, and 1,189 of them are undergoing treatment in rehabilitation centers, according to the Dangerous Drugs Board.

The figures are based on the results of a survey conducted by the Philippine Normal University.

DDB vice chairman Paul Oaminal said of the 1,189 treated at rehabilitation centers, 252 are outpatients, 775 are new arrivals and 162 have been re-admitted.

“One of the pillars of the war against drugs is the rehabilitation of drug dependents,” he said.

“Aside from supply reduction which is the neutralization of syndicates, arrest of pushers and dismantling of shabu laboratories, a vital key in the war against drugs is rehabilitation.”

“Yet it is has to be admitted that this is one aspect the government must give priority. If we could just rehabilitate half of those drug dependents and put them off the streets, it would remarkably affect the drug trade.”

Oaminal urged parents and relatives of drug dependents to have them admitted to rehabilitation centers.

The community must be informed that an addict needs medical or psychological intervention in rehabilitation centers, he added.

Oaminal said the public must demand that local chief executives continue supporting rehabilitation centers since the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002 clearly states the local government’s role in the anti-drug war.

Stories of alleged ineffectiveness of rehabilitation centers are made by the pushers to discourage families of addicts to have them rehabilitated, he added.

Oaminal lauded governors and other officials consistently supporting and enhancing rehabilitation centers like the Luntiang Paraiso Rehabilitation Center in New Corella, Davao del Norte and Negros Oriental Rehabilitation Center in Dumaguete.

Shabu remains the most abused drug in the country, followed by marijuana, according to former DDB chairman Vicen­te Sotto III.