Press Release
January 15, 2009

ON THE PROPOSED DRUG TESTING ON STUDENTS

Amid conflicting views on the proposed random drug-testing on students, Independent senator Kiko Pangilinan sees nothing wrong with the proposal. The mandatory random drug test is not an intrusion into the privacy of students; it should be considered a preventive mechanism to arrest the further swelling of the drugs problem in the country.

"The youth is the most vulnerable sector, they are prone to all types of vices so they are the target of evil perpetrators. Lalo na itong drugs, hindi ito simpleng problema, nakakasira ito ng buhay ng tao. Kaya nga ito tinawag na salot," Kiko said.

The test to be conducted to students coming from private and public high schools is necessary because the schools have a responsibility to look after the welfare and well-being of their students.

"I support the DepEd, who will take the lead in the conduct of the drug test. My only concern is that DepEd should make sure that standard operating procedures should be followed to ensure that the students who tested positive for illegal drugs should have a second test to verify the results."

Senator Kiko further said that to protect the identity of the students, they should be assigned codes or numbers, and only the DepEd and DoH would have a record of the codes with the matching identities of the students.

"The protocol is to keep the identities highly confidential because in case a student has been identified a user of illegal drugs, his character will not be smirched by the stigma attached to drug users."

Kiko adds that students who test positive of illegal drugs are not criminals instead they are victims of a social problem.

"The situation should be treated properly so it would not be blown out of proportions like it were a high profile drugs scandal. Alam mo naman ang mga tao, mahilig palakihin ang isyu. Ayaw nating na ganun ang mangyayari kaya they should observe protocol in the conduct of the random drug test."

Lastly, the DoH should before hand disclose a list of medicines that when being administered to patients have the tendency to show in the results of a drug test.

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