CEBU CITY — Schools should educate children about the ill effects of illegal drugs, Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña said Thursday.
“I would rather teach children about the ill effects of drugs inside the classroom rather than outside the classroom,” the mayor told participants of the Anti-Drug Congress at the Crown Regency Hotel in Barangay Guadalupe here.
“Do not pretend that they will (just) know about it. Curiosity is (the) No. 1 attraction to drugs,” Osmeña said, adding that teaching kids about the bad effects of drug abuse takes time and that is why he prefers the subject to be included in the school curricula.
The mayor also said that like peace and order, drug abuse is a perennial problem, and what everybody can do is just take steps to minimize the problem.
“If you think you can stop drugs, you will burn out. This is a forever problem, just like peace and order. So, you just take concrete steps in reducing the problem,” Osmeña said.
“A profile of an addict as compared to other crimes, this is a crime where victims are willing. They are in isolation. They have poor connections to the community. No guidance from their parents and friends. To counter this, you have to connect with them,” he added.
The Anti-Drug Congress, which began Wednesday, was organized by the Cebu City Office for Substance Abuse Prevention and the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) in Central Visayas, said Farlash Acenas of the Cebu City Public Information Office.
Participants include officials of the Barangay Anti-Drug Abuse Councils and representatives of the DILG, Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA), Philippine National Police, Office of the City Prosecutor, and other concerned government agencies.
Acenas said the summit aims to strengthen the role of the Badac in eradicating illegal drugs in their respective barangays in coordination with the local PNP and the local government unit through information education campaign and other worthwhile activities that would help divert the attention of drug dependents to productive endeavors.
Local Government Regional Director Rene Burdeos, PDEA 7 (Central Visayas) Director Emerson Margate, and Police Supt. Chyrel Boniao were also on hand to give their insights to participants of the Anti-Drug Congress, which ends Friday. (Luel Galarpe/PNA)
