Echiverri said that at least 30% of the country’s 42,029 barangays are classified as severely affected and some of the officials of the non-compliant barangays are in the list.
“The BADAC should be funded and implemented. It’s not just about the law enforcement alone but the local government should see to it that BADAC is in place,” he added.
Catalino Cuy, chairperson of the Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB), said BADAC is important to the anti-illegal drug campaign, in particular the monitoring and identification of suspects and the conduct of community-based rehabilitation program for mild and moderate drug users.
A DILG head before he was appointed to DDB last month, Cuy said the number of compliant barangays with functioning BADACs has increased to 70 percent from less than 50 percent at the start of the Duterte administration.
He said the BADAC conducts awareness programs for non-users to prevent them from going into illegal drug use.
He said authorities are not only addressing the country’s drug problem through supply reduction but also demand reduction.
Demand reduction efforts include rehabilitation and reintegration programs for the drug dependents, he said.
Cuy cited that barangays have refused to activate BADACs until now because their officials are either involved in illegal drug activities or are afraid to identify constituents who are into drugs.
Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency director general Aaron Aquino said a barangay with a non-functioning BADAC worsens the drug problem and makes it difficult for authorities to conduct clearing operations.
He said most of the non-functioning barangays are in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.[]
He said authorities can obtain a more accurate information about new drug suspects once BADAC is activated. Otherwise, he said, they would have difficulty verifying.[]
