PDEA supports auto rehab for confessed drug dependents

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) said on Thursday it is backing the automatic rehabilitation and treatment of drug dependents who voluntarily admit that they are substance abusers.

PDEA director general Arturo Cacdac Jr. said the agency supports House Bill 4451 authored by ACT-CIS partylist Rep. Samuel Pagdilao Jr. that seeks to strengthen the demand-reduction strategy of the national anti-drug campaign and eliminate the incidence and prevalence of drug addiction in the country.

"The proposed bill complements Section 62, Article VIII of Republic Act 9165, or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002, that defines the compulsory submission of drug dependents charged with an offense to immediate treatment and rehabilitation," Cacdac said.

In House Bill 4451, a person arrested who admits that he is a drug dependent prior to the mandated confirmatory test, shall automatically be committed to a minimum of six-month rehabilitation in a government center where costs will be shouldered by the offender.

If the dependent is rehabilitated, as certified by the treatment center and the Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB), he shall be returned to the court where he is being investigated or tried.

Cacdac said that in case of conviction, at least the accused is already rehabilitated before being jailed.

"In this way, we can reduce the growing number of drug addicts languishing in jail where illegal drugs continue to find their way," he said.

"The campaign against illegal drugs is not limited to the arrest, prosecution and conviction of drug offenders implemented in our criminal justice system; of equal importance is the prevention effort to discourage people from using illegal drugs and rehabilitation of drug dependents," he added.