Osmeña offers to pay for captains’ drug test

CEBU, Philippines - Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña has promised to pay for the drug test of the remaining 21 barangay captains, including the retest of Busay Barangay Captain Amilo Lopez, who tested positive in an earlier test conducted by the City Office for Substance Abuse Prevention, if they agree to use hair sample.

Osmeña said that using hair sample in the test is more accurate than urine. The mayor said he would ask Councilor Mary Ann delos Santos, deputy mayor on health services, to immediately schedule the drug test.

 “I will arrange if he wants to get his hair sample together with other barangay captains who haven’t taken the test,” the mayor told reporters yesterday.

A drug test using hair sample would cost P6,000 each.

There are 20 barangay captains in Cebu City who are yet to take the drug test. Lopez was among the 60 barangay captains who underwent the test last week. He tested positive but argued that the result was tainted with politics. Lopez is a member of the Team Rama.

COSAP chief Dr. Alice Utlang denied Lopez’s claim. Utlang said there was no politics in the results of the test.

According to Utlang, all those who took the test were asked to declare their maintenance medicine. She added there was also no possibility that the maintenance medicine would affect the test.

“Akong gi-check, dili man kay ang testing nato ninety-nine percent sensitivity ug specific sa mao ra nga druga o chemicals,” she told reporters.

The test was specifically conducted for shabu, marijuana, ecstasy, cocaine and opium.

Utlang said that the confirmatory test result will be out two weeks from now. — /FPL