Piñol bucks elected pols who had no drug tests

COTABATO CITY — Barely two weeks after his re-election, North Cotabato’s iron-fisted Gov. Emmanuel Piñol is again in fighting form.

This time, Piñol is threatening to work for the perpetual disqualification from public office of elected officials who failed to undergo drug tests during the election period.

"They must be able to prove to their respective constituencies before their oath-taking on June 30 that they are not drug dependents. If they cannot (do that), it’s better for them not to assume their positions anymore," he said.

Lawyer Lilian Suan-Radam, North Cotabato election supervisor, said Piñol has requested her office to direct all provincial personnel of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to remind all elected officials to comply with the mandatory drug testing before June 30.

Piñol, known for his hardline policy against lawless elements and Moro separatist rebels, defeated with an almost 200,000 vote-lead his lone opponent, Rolando Pelonio, during the recent polls.

He said he is even willing to spend his own money for the drug testing fee of each elected North Cotabato official just to facilitate their compliance.

Piñol said he would spend his third and last term as governor neutralizing drug syndicates in his province.

From 1998 until April this year, Piñol had worked for the arrest of dozens of kidnappers.

He also vigorously pursued the conversion of all enclaves of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front in North Cotabato into "peace zones" to prevent armed groups from using these former MILF camps as springboards for kidnapping, drug trafficking, extortion and other unlawful activities. — John Unson