Mark Anthony Viray, PDEA Camarines Sur chief, said that his office is expecting that big deals on prohibited drugs are likely to happen in the city during the celebration of the fiesta in September, this year, the 312th year of devotion to the Our lady of Peñafrancia.

In a meeting with Vice Mayor Cecilia V. de Asis and the city councilors, Viray said that the PDEA in the province has begun conducting a series of intensified anti-illegal drugs operations that will lead to the arrest of drug personalities who may have planned to pursue their nefarious trade during the Peñafrancia fiesta.

He told the city officials that one of the factors why Naga appears to be the preferred place for illicit drug deals is that Naga is a center of commerce where drug personalities can discreetly meet aside from being an ideal transshipment point to Visayas and Mindanao provinces.

It would be observed that anti-illegal drug operations in the city by combined teams of the Philippine National Police and PDEA personnel led to the confiscation of packages of crystal meth in previous months.

Reports also said that the operatives were able to seize a kilo of the prohibited drugs in their operations conducted in Barangay Peñafrancia and more than P4-M worth of the substance in Barangay Bagumbayan Norte.

In an interview, City Councilor Omar Buenafe, a retired police general and former PNP regional director in Bicol, said that he is confident that the PNP and PDEA along with other enforcement agencies can handle the significant problem on the proliferation of illegal drugs in the city.

He even called on the barangay officials to appropriately take part in the fight against illegal drugs as the criminals continue their nefarious activities.

By Jason B. Neola

The program, which is being established nationwide by way of partnership between the Philippine National Police and the Department of Tourism, is intended to ensure the safety and security of tourists while enjoying the city’s must-see destinations.

DOT-5 Regional Director Herbie Aguas said the formation of tourism police assures foreign and domestic tourists that it’s safe and more fun visiting the different tourist attractions in this part of the country and other top destinations in Bicol.

“If the tourists feel safe, they will keep on coming back, uulit at babalik and babalik pa sila,” Aguas said as he mentioned the increasing tourist arrivals in the city and the Bicol Region when the country started again to open up the tourism industry in February 2022.

According to surveys conducted by the LGU’s Arts, Culture, and Tourism Office headed by Alec Francis Santos, the top concern of tourists when choosing a destination is safety and security.

The creation of the tourist police unit is a direct response to that concern. By having a dedicated police unit for Naga’s tourism industry, the city can expect a safer environment for both foreign and local visitors. This is crucial since tourism is one of Naga’s economic pillar and is responsible for generating much needed jobs and livelihood.

Initially, there are 21 police personnel who were tapped by the LGU’s Arts, Culture, and Tourism Office for the TOPCOP in collaboration with the NCPO led by Col. Nelson Pacalso.

He said that the city government of Naga is on the right track when it decided to adopt the TOPCOP like in Calaguas Island in the municipality of Vinzons in Camarines Norte and in Donsol, Sorsogon that takes pride with its Butanding interaction and festival.

The tourism official was elated upon learning that LGU Naga in partnership with the Philippine National Police is planning to conduct more trainings for PNP personnel who wish to join the TOPCOP.

“The idea [of conducting training for tourist police] will provide us a prepared venue where we can arrange an ideal benchmarking with regards to the adoption of the [TOPCOP] program by other LGUs,” he said. (Jason B. Neola)