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THE DEPARTMENT of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) has teamed up with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), along with the Department of Health, to enhance community-based drug rehabilitation programs nationwide.  

At a livestreamed partnership signing event on Wednesday, DILG Secretary Benjamin C. Abalos, Jr. said rehabilitation initiatives at the local level are as important as the efforts of law enforcement agencies to cut supply.   

“Beyond treatment, local government units (LGUs) and government agencies are also tasked to provide for recovery, support, and reintegration of recovering drug users,” he said.  

Under the agreement, USAID would provide information drive programs on social behavior change in relation to illegal drug use, capacity-building programs for community workers, and other advocacy programs related to illegal drug use prevention, the DILG said in a statement. 

“With these community-based rehabilitation programs and our partnership with USAID, we will implement a whole of nation approach in preventing the use of illegal drugs,” the interior chief said. 

Citing government data from July 1 to Dec. 8 last year, Mr. Abalos said nearly P10 billion worth of illegal drugs had been seized from anti-illegal drug operations.

The Interior secretary said last year that the drug war would be “as intensive” as before, prioritizing the rule of law when conducting drug operations. 

In January, he called on all colonels and generals to resign after a probe found many top police officers were involved in the illegal drug trade.  

A five-man advisory committee will release the results of its probe of high-ranking cops potentially involved in the illegal drug trade in the next two to three days, Mr. Abalos told reporters on Wednesday. — John Victor D. Ordoñez 

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