PDEA-6 men test negative of drug use

ILOILO CITY, Philippines — All officials and personnel of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency-6 have tested negative of drug use, during a surprise test conducted the other day.

PDEA-6 legal counsel Ronnie Delicana said that after a command conference, all of the agency's men and officers were made to line up for the drug test using urine samples.

It was conducted on all PDEA-6 members: Delicana, PDEA-6 regional director Yogi Filemon Ruiz, technical personnel, enforcement officers, and utility workers.

After a few hours, Delicana announced that all of them tested negative of illegal drug use, which proved that the agency was a drug-free workplace.

"We want to ensure that our personnel are not using drugs. For us to clean other people's backyard, we must clean our own backyard first," he said.

Delicana said that passing their own drug test was part of their effort to build their moral ascendancy and uphold their integrity considering their work.

The testing was also done in line with the provision of Section 47, Article V of Republic Act 9165 (Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act), which states: "It is deemed a policy of the State to promote drug-free workplaces using a tripartite approach."

Delicana said the latest drug test would not be the last for this year.

"Usually, we do drug testing on personnel at least four times a year. But it should not be misconstrued that we would be doing this quarterly. It would be done in random," he added.  (FREEMAN)