The province of Negros Oriental has reported that an additional 30 barangays have been declared drug-free.
In a blended deliberation conducted on April 11-12 in Cebu City, the Province reported that the 30 barangays increased the total to 238 (43 percent) of the 557 barangays that have been cleared from illegal drugs.
Emerson Margate, regional director of Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency-Central Visayas, who presided the Regional Oversight Committee on Barangay Drug Clearing, said that 76 barangays were recently declared drug-free, and 30 of which are in Negros Oriental.
Over half, or 1,744 out of the 3003 barangays in Central Visayas, are now cleared from illegal drugs, Margate said
Siquijor, meanwhile, reports that 80 percent, or 107 of the 134 barangays, are now drug-free.
Tudela municipality in Cebu province was conferred the status of a drug-free municipality, the ninth so far in the region.
The data showed the region still has 1,143 barangays listed as drug-affected, while 116 are already drug-free.
Bohol province topped three other provinces and three highly-urbanized cities in terms of the number of drug-cleared barangays at 655 or 59 percent of its 1,109 villages, followed by Cebu province with 65 percent or 692 of the 1,066 barangays.
The report listed Cebu City with only 26 or 32 percent of its 80 barangays cleared from illegal drugs; while Lapu-Lapu has 27 percent of 30 barangays; and 18 of 27 villages or 67 percent in Mandaue City. (PNA)
