Chapter 1

THE PROBLEM AND ITS SCOPE

Rationale

Whenever you turned on your television set, all you could hear and see are various reports of

drug-related crimes around the Philippines. Even in the newspapers and tabloids you could read

negative reports against the effects of abusive use of illegal drugs to its user. Crimes and drugs

are social issues that need to be resolved by the government immediately. The number of

reported drug-related crimes had been rising, while the ability of the government to solve these

crimes has decreased.

Barangay Tangke is one of the 22 barangays in the City of Talisay in the Province of Cebu that is

within Region VII in the central visayas area. Barangay Tangke has seven (7) sitio namely: Sitio

Salvador, Sitio Kilawan, Sitio San Rafael, Sitio San Pedro, Sitio Magay, Sitio Galaxy, and Sitio

Rattan.

Based on reports, it was found out that there is rampant selling of illegal drugs in the barangay as

Cebu Provincial Police Office Director Noel Gillamac said. He issued a warning against the

Talisay City Police Station chief for failing to conduct more raids in Barangay Tangke and

during a surveillance conducted by Provincial Intelligence Branch and Provincial Anti-Illegal

Drugs Special Operation Task Group. “Mora ra og candy nga paliton nimo didto ang shabu

(Buying shabu is as easy as buying a candy).

The Cebu Provincial Police Office (CPPO) is assessing the performance of all police station

chiefs in the campaign against illegal drugs. Supt. Noel Gillamac, CPPO director, warned police

station chiefs to boost their efforts in stamping out illegal drugs or they'll be sorry. “I will be

forced to relieve them and file administrative charges for non-performance of their duties and

responsibilities,” he said during a press briefing. The Talisay City Police Station, led by Supt.

Reycel Carmelo Dayon, reportedly conducted saturation drives in Barangay Tangke.

Since Drug trade is not just rampant in Barangay Tangke alone but also in other places of the

country. Due to this, the attention of President Rodrigo "Digong" Duterte has proposed and

implemented a war against drugs so called “OPLAN TOKHANG” to be held by Philippine

National Police because for him there is a great need to resolve and help those who are already

addicted to this drug and there would be great deterioration within many Filipino communities if

the government fails to resolve illegal drug use in the country.

OPLAN TOKHANG is a project of the PNP, a national law enforcement project that was

implemented all over the country. The word "Tokhang" is from a visayan word "Toktok-

Hangyo" which means to approach and talk. This was launched as part of the campaign where

policemen visit the residence of drug suspects to appeal for them to change their ways and warn

illegal drug traffickers and users to stop their illegal activities.

Indeed, this research aims to find out the perception of the Barangay Tangke to the program

"Oplan Tokhang" since the place is known for its rampant drug trade. This would find out if the

program could lessen or stop the users and pushers to their illegal activities in the barangay, or it

could worsen the current situation and could create other crimes that linked to abusive use of
prohibited drugs such as robbery, snatching, streets fights, and even some killings. It would also

cover their ways of implementing the program and how it affects them as one community.