Kiangan, Ifugao – 109 Drug surrenderers graduated from a 6-month long Community-based Rehabilitation Program at the Ifugao Reflection Camp (IRC) last April 25, 2017. Together with their family and relatives, the former drug dependents received their certificates during the graduation rites held at the Ifugao War Memorial Shrine.
The graduation is the first in the country since President Rodrigo Duterte took office last 1 August 2016.
The IRC is one of the few institutions nationwide whose program covers all the five (5) facets of drug rehabilitation as defined under Rep. Act 9165, or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Law.
The program implemented in the center focuses on physical, mental, emotional, spiritual, and vocational reform of a drug user within a 6-month treatment period followed by 18 months after-care services. Adopting the ‘multi-disciplinary approach’, the IRC program is implemented by teams of combined personnel from the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), Philippine National Police (PNP), Philippine Army, Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) and the Department of Health (DOH). Management is under the Provincial Anti-drug Abuse Council (PADAC), which then mandates all Municipal Anti-drug Abuse Council (MADAC) and the Barangay Anti-drug Abuse Council (BADAC) to provide support at community levels. The overarching goal is to provide drug surrenderers to have another opportunity in life.
The graduates are composed of 104 males (12 minors) and 5 females. They have complied with all the requirements prescribed by a community-based rehabilitation program which includes a six day per month for six months stay at the IRC and three weeks for every month for six months community integration.
The graduation was attended by DSWD Assistant Secretary Anton Hernandez, DSWD Assistant Secretary Lorraine Marie Badoy and Assistant Secretary Aurora Ignacio from the Office of the Special Assistant to the President.
Meanwhile, Mayor Celso Oliver Dator of Lucban, Quezon province also attended the activity and is planning to have a collaboration with the provincial government of Ifugao for the duplication of the program. Hon. Celso Dator cited that they’ll send people to IRC for training.
Assistant Sec. Hernandez has been pushing the IRC structure in the senate for duplication of other provinces. “I have been fighting tooth and nail for Ifugao to be model nationally; I have already filed IRC to be one of the models for drug rehabilitation.” Anton said.
The DSWD is among the lead agencies implementing the National Drug Rehabilitation Program under Pillar III which focuses in providing reintegration, rehabilitation, and transformation support for recovering drug dependents. It aims to help drug users and pushers return as productive members of the society. #DSWD-CAR, SOCIAL MARKETING UNIT, Mark Erik King D. Guanzon
