In recent months, newspaper headlines in Tagbilaran City and the province of Bohol brought to prominence what has been suspected by the public all along – that the province has seemingly become a major transshipment point for illegal drugs and that drug pushers and abusers have increased quite significantly over the last few years. More alarmingly, drug syndicates are generally perceived to be operating in the province with knowledge of, if not connivance, with duly constituted authorities.
Drug-related killings and other heinous crimes, such as rape (in one case, a mother was raped by her own son who is a drug addict); physical assault, theft and robbery. More than a dozen drug pushers have been reportedly shot dead in broad daylight, in busy streets, of Tagbilaran City and in the towns by unknown assassins in motorcyles riding in tandem.
Whether by covert police operations or by vigilantes, these killings damage the traditionally peaceful Bol-anon way of life. They do not reflect the vast reservoir of social capital and community cohesiveness that Bohol is noted for both in te country and abroad. It negates what has been vaunted about as our brand of life in Bohol.
Pursuing this as key strategy to address the current drug menace will not be effective. A multi-pronged approach is needed which may include the following:
-a comprehensive public awareness campaign aimed at enlisting people and institutions at the grassroots level in the fight against drug abuse;
-a committed police force well-equipped to combat syndicates who use illegal means and intimidation to expand their network of drug pushers and other shady agents in every sector of society; and, equally important,
-a rehabilitation center which will combine community-based approaches with cost-effective clinical methods and a humanitarian and eclectic strategy to deal with hundreds of drug users who seem to inhabit practically all the barangays in the province whose presence threatens social stability and the attainment of peace and progress and represents a sheer waste in human resources.
Bohol Local Development Foundation, Inc. (BLDF) and its predecessor organization, the UNICEF-assisted Ilaw International Center (IIC), have a combined experience of more than thirty years in efforts to address poverty in ways that enhance partnership with local communities and institutions. More recently, it has shifted its program focus from implementing a community-based shelter assistance project for families rendered homeless by the magnitude 7.2 earthquake in the province to the promotion of informal employment and sustainable livelihood among the youth, particularly those who are out of school or those in Alternative Learning Systems (ALS).
In less than a year of implementing projects for the out-of-school youth, BLDF has become convinced that it cannot ignore the drug abuse problem which is causing deaths and injuries to a growing number of people and negating in the process, the gains made in previous years in development planning and implementation.
BLDF seeks to be part of the evolving plans and programs to combat a growing menace in society. Otherwise, the achievements in combatting poverty and ensuring sustainable development in the province will be for naught.
More next post.
Drug-related killings and other heinous crimes, such as rape (in one case, a mother was raped by her own son who is a drug addict); physical assault, theft and robbery. More than a dozen drug pushers have been reportedly shot dead in broad daylight, in busy streets, of Tagbilaran City and in the towns by unknown assassins in motorcyles riding in tandem.
Whether by covert police operations or by vigilantes, these killings damage the traditionally peaceful Bol-anon way of life. They do not reflect the vast reservoir of social capital and community cohesiveness that Bohol is noted for both in te country and abroad. It negates what has been vaunted about as our brand of life in Bohol.
Pursuing this as key strategy to address the current drug menace will not be effective. A multi-pronged approach is needed which may include the following:
-a comprehensive public awareness campaign aimed at enlisting people and institutions at the grassroots level in the fight against drug abuse;
-a committed police force well-equipped to combat syndicates who use illegal means and intimidation to expand their network of drug pushers and other shady agents in every sector of society; and, equally important,
-a rehabilitation center which will combine community-based approaches with cost-effective clinical methods and a humanitarian and eclectic strategy to deal with hundreds of drug users who seem to inhabit practically all the barangays in the province whose presence threatens social stability and the attainment of peace and progress and represents a sheer waste in human resources.
Bohol Local Development Foundation, Inc. (BLDF) and its predecessor organization, the UNICEF-assisted Ilaw International Center (IIC), have a combined experience of more than thirty years in efforts to address poverty in ways that enhance partnership with local communities and institutions. More recently, it has shifted its program focus from implementing a community-based shelter assistance project for families rendered homeless by the magnitude 7.2 earthquake in the province to the promotion of informal employment and sustainable livelihood among the youth, particularly those who are out of school or those in Alternative Learning Systems (ALS).
In less than a year of implementing projects for the out-of-school youth, BLDF has become convinced that it cannot ignore the drug abuse problem which is causing deaths and injuries to a growing number of people and negating in the process, the gains made in previous years in development planning and implementation.
BLDF seeks to be part of the evolving plans and programs to combat a growing menace in society. Otherwise, the achievements in combatting poverty and ensuring sustainable development in the province will be for naught.
More next post.
No comments:
Post a Comment