Balbalan LGU goes school to school, educating the youth against illegal drugs and encouraging practice of defensive driving

Balbalan, Kalinga – Illegal drugs are a menace to society, and the Municipal Local Government of Balbalan is not letting these substances destroy the future of the youth who are the next nation builders, thus the implementation of school-to-school visits by the LGU.

In 2024, around P20.7 billion of illegal drugs were confiscated in the Philippines, leading to the arrest of over 52,000 individuals, according to the PNP.

Statistical Analysis of the Dangerous Drugs Board on its Treatment and Rehabilitation Admission Information System in 2024 revealed that 40.08% of the reported admissions had their first drug use at 15 – 19 years old.

Led by Mayor Almar Malannag, the Balbalan LGU, together with the PNP Balbalan, is visiting all seven secondary schools in town for an information education campaign on illegal drugs and the practice of defensive driving, especially in reminding students to wear their helmets once they get on their motorbikes.

The event, which consisted of comprehensive lectures, kicked off at Balbalan Agro-Industrial High School on July 22, then followed by Balbalan National High School, St. Theresita’s High School of Salegseg, and St. Paul Memorial School of Kalinga, Inc. on succeeding days.

The students at Eastern Balbalan National High School will be the next to undergo the campaign on August 8 (tentative), followed by Western Kalinga National High School on August 12, then Dao-angan Integrated School.

Only 3 drug cases recorded in Balbalan since 2024

In an interview with Mayor Malannag, he relayed that there were three drug pushers arrested in Balbalan from the last quarter of 2024 to the second quarter of 2025. While the number may be few, the arrest of such people is considered alarming to a town which do not tolerate the selling and use of illegal substances.

The Mayor said this is what prompted them to conduct the series of lectures in the seven secondary schools, emphasizing that prevention comes through awareness. Malannag added that they also included defensive driving in the campaign to educate young people about the importance of wearing helmets.

“Napanunut tayo, as the local chief executive ditoy Balbalan, maymayat nu dakami mismo nga taga LGU iti mismo mapan mangi-asideg kadagitoy uubbing tayo nga madi iti droga, nga awan iti nasayaat nga epekto na daytoy iti pamilya ken ili, ken dadaelen na lang daytoy iti napintas nga masakbayan da. Madi mi kayat nga ditoy Balbalan adu iti drugs nga sumrek ditoy,” the Mayor emphasized.