Drug personalities and possibly theft and robbery suspects have until tomorrow to yield themselves to authorities to avoid a possible bloody verdict espoused by no less than the President.
Having charge of the capital city, Tagbilaran chief of police, Supt. George Vale, originally set the deadline on July 8, but extended it to July 11 upon the request of some barangay captains who manifested that more are yet to come out.
The deadline is intended to prompt officials in other areas of the province with slow turnout to also catch up and set their own deadlines also.
Since the number is relative to the level of illegal drug influence in an area, the parameter is directed at the pace of coming out that may determine the convincing factor of barangay officials assisting the police.
Vale also considers applying Oplan Tok-hang to theft and robbery suspects as the police record shows that most perpetrators in theft and robbery cases are also into drugs.
He noted that mostly persons hooked in drugs engaged in theft and robbery to sustain their vices.
At of the latest count, the city police station had already accommodated 470 drug personalities who promised to never return to the illegal drugs.
Of the number, 15 admitted having been engaged in drug peddling, while 355 admitted as users.
Eight of the self-confessed illegal drug users were female, according to Vale.
Right after the deadline, Vale warned that aggressive steps will be taken against the remaining drug personalities who refused to yield themselves.
For his part, Cogon Barangay Captain Nicanor Besas, the Liga ng mga Barangay president in the city, also warned drug personalities who still refuse to surrender without categorically stating the fate set for them, except the broad warning that they might regret it.
Besas, whose barangay posted the most number of drug personalities in the intelligence list, led the Tok-hang campaign.
Cogon also has the most number of personalities implicated in theft and robbery.
Besas noted that since the implementation of Oplan Tok-Hang, the number of crimes reduced and that some of the police characters had already fled and no longer show up in their barangay.
On the other hand, the city police team had just arrested yesterday afternoon, a female drug personality whose name landed in the police watchlist.
The arrested person, Rosabetz Sarigumba, a 47-year-old resident of sitio Sitio Lugapak at Gallares St. in Poblacion 2 was caught handing a sachet of shabu during the buy-bust operation in exchange of P500.
When the cops frisked her, they recovered another pack of shabu in a medium-size pack and six more in smaller packs, and drug paraphernalia from her possession.
Sarigumba, was not in the list of targets for Oplan Tok-Hang, but she was in the watchlist of drug personalities in the city.
Vale said Sarigumba’s supply of shabu came from the New Bilibid Prison in Muntinlupa.(with reports from Wellie Maestrado)