PUERTO PRINCESA CITY, Palawan -- The Palawan government’s rehabilitation program for drug surrenderers is set to help two reforming addicts in the island municipality of Kalayaan in the West Philippine Sea.
Kalayaan Mayor Roberto del Mundo and Palawan Governor Jose Alvarez on Thursday afternoon signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) that would bring the Community Enhancement and Livelihood Program (CELP) to serve two residents who surrendered under “Double Barrel Reloaded” in 2017.
“I hope that this program would continue to reach out to the drug surrenderers even if they’re one or two only. Our goal is to reach out to them no matter how small their number is, whether they are on the mainland or in distant island municipalities,” the governor said during the agreement signing.
Alvarez said the 16-week drug rehabilitation initiative is the province’s answer to President Rodrigo R. Duterte’s call for local governments to help those who had voluntarily surrendered under the nationwide anti-illegal drug campaign.
Under the MOA, Kalayaan is expected to support its two drug surrenderers after they graduate from the CELP by providing them livelihood assistance.
Del Mundo assured the governor and the implementors of CELP that his administration is sincere in its desire to help the two reforming drug addicts renew their lives and be back into mainstream society.
“We are very thankful in Kalayaan because even if they are only two, CELP is willing to help them. This is a great demonstration of the principle of ‘no one is left behind’,” he said.
CELP, a drug rehabilitation initiative that began in 2016, is a program of the provincial government to support Palaweños, who voluntarily surrendered under the Philippine National Police’s “Oplan Tokhang” and “Double Barrel Reloaded”.
Since its implementation, it has already graduated 432 persons from the municipalities of Brooke’s Point, San Vicente, Roxas, Araceli, and El Nido.
Kalayaan is a third-class municipality located in the West Philippines Sea. Its center of government is situated on Pag-asa Island. (PNA)
