Approximately one thousand runners join the launch of the anti-drug campaign dubbed Buhay Ingatan, Droga’y Ayawan (BIDA) in the Bangsamoro region on June 13, 2024, in Cotabato City. (MILG BARMM READI)
COTABATO CITY—Bangsamoro Government’s Minister of the Interior and Local Government (MILG) on Thursday morning welcomed approximately one thousand participants who expressed their support to the anti-drug campaign dubbed Buhay Ingatan, Droga’y Ayawan (BIDA).
MILG Minister Atty. Sha Elijah Dumama-Alba spearheaded the BIDA launch with a fun run participated in by employees from various ministries, offices, and agencies of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) and the Cotabato City local government unit (LGU), starting from the City Hall Ground and culminated at the Bangsamoro Government Center (BGC) Ground.
The BIDA Program is a comprehensive anti-drug initiative of the national government, through the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), aimed at promoting public health and community well-being through education, prevention, and rehabilitation.
The campaign seeks to empower communities to reject drug use and to support individuals and families affected by drug abuse. The program emphasizes a balanced and humane approach, combining law enforcement with community-based interventions and support systems to create a safer, healthier Bangsamoro.
Minister Dumama stressed the importance of collective effort in the fight against drugs, saying, “Together, we stand united against the scourge of illegal drugs, protecting the lives and future of our people.”
Senior Minister Abunawas “Von Al-Haq” Maslamama was also present in the activity and delivered BARMM Chief Minister Ahod Ebrahim’s message.
“This launch marks a pivotal moment in our ongoing efforts to create a safer, healthier Bangsamoro. Through the BIDA Program, we are empowering our communities to reject drugs and embrace positive change,” the Chief Minister stated.
In 2022, the DILG launched the BIDA Program which will work with LGUs, national government agencies, and other key sectors of society, including the barangays, the church and religious communities, and the general public in addressing the country’s illegal drug woes and rehabilitating illegal drug victims.
DILG Secretary Benjamin C. Abalos Jr. said the country’s drug woes should be resolved at the grassroots level.
“Kung mayroon kang isang puno, gusto mong tanggalin ang sanga, putol ka nang putol ng sanga. Pero ang sanga, tubo nang tubo. Kung gusto mong tanggalin ang puno, ugatin mo, ugatin mo ‘yung puno,” Abalos said.
[If there is a tree, you cut the branches and you keep on cutting yet the branches keep on growing. If you want to cut the tree, get rid of its roots, target the roots]
Officials who joined and pledged their commitment of support on Thursday’s launch included Cotabato City Mayor Mohammad Ali ‘Bruce’ D Matabalao; Regional Director of PRO BAR PBGen Prexy D Tanggawohn; Hadja Bainon G Karon, Chairperson of the Bangsamoro Women Commission; Pratima H Sabal-Samsaraji, Commissioner for Tawi-Tawi of the Bangsamoro Youth Commission; and Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) Regional Director Gil Cesario Castro. (Aisah Abas/BIO)
