BAGUIO CITY – Mayor Mauricio G. Domogan said the local government has given three employees a 60-day grace period to reverse the results of their confirmatory tests that showed their alleged use of prohibited drugs.
The local chief executive admitted based on the results of the random drug test conducted among all local government officials and employees, there were 4 employees that tested positive for illegal drug use and that they were subsequently required to undergo the confirmatory test that showed similar results.
However, he revealed one of the employees that tested positive for marijuana use reportedly died even before the results of his confirmatory test came out because of alleged brain cancer.
“We already issued the appropriate notices to the concerned employees for them to refute the results of their confirmatory tests within two months as part of the due process being accorded to them,” Domogan stressed.
He noted that the one who died tested positive for marijuana use because he might have been using marijuana as medication to his terminal brain cancer considering that marijuana has reported medicinal properties.
According to him, the public should refrain from judging those who were found positive for the use of illegal drugs because they deserve to be given the chance to reform as they might have been misled into using the addictive drugs until they were not able to control themselves because of peer influence, or other outside factors might have forced them to take illegal drugs.
If the three employees will not be able to negate the results of their confirmatory tests within the prescribed period, Domogan said the necessary charges will be filed against them that could lead to their eventual dismissal from the service.
He claimed there is a need for the local government to comply with the orders of President Rodrigo R. Duterte for the cleansing of the government offices from the presence of personalities involved in illegal drugs because their performance will definitely affect the overall image of the government from the perception of the public.
He asserted drug users have no place in the local government that is why whatever actions that will be taken against those who tested positive for illegal drug use should serve as a lesson for them and that it will send a clear message to prospective users of illegal drugs that they should not even attempt to use drugs even for experiment purposes.
Domogan appealed to the public for understanding in the imposition of penalties against those who tested positive for the use of illegal drugs because there are processes that should be followed to avoid technicalities on the part of the local government once it will impose the penalties against those erring officials and employees.
By Dexter A. See
