CEBU CITY — At least three former barangay captains in Cebu were included in the list of 207 narco-politicians released by the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) on Monday.
Named among the barangay officials believed to be involved in illegal drugs by PDEA were ex-barangay captains Ramonette Durano of Suba, Danao City; Bibiano Cabaron of Palanas, Ronda, Cebu; and Marc Ferdinand Bas of Lagtang, Talisay City.
Durano is now serving as the public information officer of Danao City, while Cabaron is an incumbent municipal councilor of Ronda. Bas is reportedly now in the United States.
No barangay official in the city was included in the PDEA list.
The PDEA said the list was validated based on the intelligence gathered by the agency, Philippine National Police, National Intelligence Coordinating Agency, and the Intelligence Service of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.
The named barangay officials, most of whom are incumbent, are either drug users, traders, protectors, or have ties with drug personalities, it said.
However, PDEA Director General Aaron Aquino, during the release of the barangay drug list at the PDEA headquarters in Quezon City, said those not in the list should not celebrate yet as some of them are still under validation and may be added to the list sooner before the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections this May 14.
The PDEA chief also advised the barangays to activate their respective Barangay Anti-Drug Abuse Councils and coordinate with the local government units to attain “drug-free” status. (Luel Galarpe/PNA)
