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GOLD AWARDEES: ALAMINOS, BAYAMBANG

1st National ADAC Performance Awards cite 28 LGUs
ALAMINOS CITY—Twenty-eight local government units in Pangasinan were cited by the 1st National
Anti-Drug Abuse Council (ADAC) Performance Awards for their successful anti-drug abuse programs this
year.

Alaminos City and Bayambang were the lone city and municipality gold awardees respectively in the
country.

The awardees received their citations on Dec. 28 at the Tent City in Manila Hotel.

Sharing the limelight as silver awardees from Pangasinan were the cities of Dagupan, San Carlos and
Urdaneta; Alcala, Anda, Balungao, Bolinao, Bugallon, Burgos, Calasiao, Infanta, Labrador, Lingayen,
Malasiqui, Pozorrubio, Rosales, San Manuel, San Nicolas, Sta. Barbara, Sta. Maria, Sison, Sual,
Urbiztondo, Villasis and Laoac.

Pangasinan was silver awarded under the provincial category.

An advisory dated Dec. 18, 2018 signed by Janvier Echeverri, assistant secretary for External and
Legislative Affairs of the Department of Interior and Local Government, also project administrator of
Strengthening Anti-Drug Abuse Council Project, said only 241 local government units out of the 1,715
provinces, cities and municipalities across the country were cited.

Factors such as composition, financial capabilities, functionality, and accomplishments of ADACs in

different levels of local government units were considered during the ADAC Performance Audit – National
Calibration.

These include their financial and physical accomplishments, drug-clearing operations and community-
based rehabilitation programs.

The Alaminos City Anti-Drug Abuse Council has its Alaminos Rehabilitation and Transformation (ART)
Project named after Alaminos City Mayor Arthur Celeste that conducts anti-illegal drugs advocacy
campaign or preventive education seminars or symposia as well as Community-Based Rehabilitation
Program.

Alaminos CADAC, joined by barangay councils, Philippine National Police (PNP) and the St. Joseph
Parish, implements programs to ensure the total transformation of drug surrenderers for the sustainability
of Community-Based Rehabilitation Program.

The ART Project has three categories: Rehabilitation, Reformation of Drug Surrenderers and
Transformation of Drug-Affected to Drug-Cleared Barangays.

Because of the success of ART Project, Alaminos was the first city in Region 1 to be declared drug-free
on June 19, 2018.

Meanwhile, one major initiative that clinched the national silver award for Dagupan City was its Sagip-
User Rehabilitation and Empowerment (SURE) program, said a report from the City Information of
Dagupan.

Through Mayor Belen Fernandez’s initiative, the SURE program seeks to help drug surrenderers undergo
drug-rehabilitation for free and earn the chance to start a new life by providing free moral and spiritual
formations and helping them earn a clean living under the city’s livelihood programs.
The program is a continuous collaborative effort among the PNP Dagupan, the Philippine Drug
Enforcement Agency, the City Health Office and religious groups in helping transform the lives of drug
personalities who surrendered.

As of September 2018, some 923 drug reformists already graduated from the program and these are
being regularly monitored by the Dagupan PNP.

SURE Program focal person Erjon Kevin Pangilinan said, “Our SURE program primarily wants to change
the lifestyles of drug surrenderers. Now, we are also working out programs for our plea-bargaining
grantees.” (PhilStar Wire Service)

Wanted: A new brand of People Power

AS we bid goodbye to year 2018, and the country is about to decide on who will be new set of local
government leaders that will govern the countryside, the series of violence that have taken place are
clearly politically-motivated killings.

As we have come to learn over the decades that local elections are the most emotionally-charged
political event in the country, a lot more than presidential and national elections, and it’s time that
communities take control instead of being controlled.

It’s during local elections when serious conflicts within traditional political families surface, when
neighbors see their differing political views as personal affront, when the electorate unabashedly
encourage candidates to “buy” their votes, when supporters take to their jobs as livelihood, when
rumors of betrayal lead candidates and their supporters to commit violence.

Our police can only do so much to protect and prevent bloodshed, so much is left to local media,
religious, NGOs, professional and civic sectors to help create a peaceful environment. They must stand
as one in organizing debates and fora on specific community issues and political agenda for the
town/city.

As a group, it must convey the message that it will not hesitate to name the candidate that has refused
to participate in organized activities while making it known that they will condemn any violence that will
be committed against any candidate and his/her supporters.

This is the kind of people power that the country sorely needs. Not the kind that seeks to overthrow a
legitimate government.