DAGUPAN CITY — On the level of the Pangasinan Police Provincial Office (PPPO), the whole province of Pangasinan was already cleared of illegal drugs as of last December 28.
P/Chief Inspector Norman Florentino, chief of the Police Community Relations Office (PCR) and information officer of the Pangasinan Police Provincial Office (PPPO), confirmed during the Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster sa Pilipinas (KBP) forum on Thursday, that the police met its self-imposed deadline to clear all of Pangasinan of illegal drugs before the end of 2017.
He said all of the province’s 1,271 drug-affected barangays, from the total 1,364 in 48 towns and cities of Pangasinan, are already cleared of illegal drugs.
There are 93 barangays in the province that are drug-unaffected.
But on the level of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA), only one city and 12 towns comprising 623 barangays that have so far been validated are considered drug-free.
These are Alaminos City, Laoac, Agno, Anda, Dasol, Burgos, Mabini, Natividad, San Nicolas, Alcala, Malasiqui, Sta. Maria and Mapandan.
Sto. Tomas is the only town in Pangasinan that is drug unaffected.
Florentino said four other towns — Sison, San Jacinto, Labrador and Aguilar — have already been approved to be considered drug-free by the regional validation committee of PDEA and are only awaiting for their official declaration as drug-free towns.
Nine other towns are awaiting approval from the PDEA regional validation committee. These are Bautista, Binalonan, Bugallon, Calasiao, Lingayen, Mangatarem, San Manuel, Bayambang and Rosales.
Florentino said no drug-cleared barangay or town has been monitored to have slid back to the old stature of drug-affected. (Leonardo Micua/PNA)
