ILOILO City – Thirty-two police officers of the Tigbauan Municipal Police Station, including their chief, Captain Jorge Linantud, underwent an unscheduled drug test on Tuesday, August 13.
Personnel from the Police Regional Office 6’s Regional Forensic Unit conducted the drug testing.
Major Rolando Araño, spokesperson for the Iloilo Police Provincial Office (IPPO), said this initiative was part of the IPPO’s internal cleansing program in accordance with the Philippine National Police’s existing program.
“This activity was also done to know if there are personnel who are using illegal drugs. Those who would test positive for illegal drugs use will be administratively sanctioned,” Araño said.
For his part, IPPO director Colonel Bayani Razalan emphasized the importance of such measures in maintaining the integrity and credibility of the police force. He contemplated that all field unit personnel will undergo random drug tests before this year ends.
“As law enforcers, we must ensure the safety and well-being of our community. To effectively perform our duties, we must maintain the trust and confidence of the public, which is essential to the success of our goal of more secure, peaceful, drug-free, and progressive Iloilo. The surprise drug test we just conducted was only among the surprise drug tests that will be conducted across all our field units,” Razalan said./PN
