SURIGAO del Norte Rep. Robert Ace Barbers on Friday hailed Sen. Robinhood Padilla’s call encouraging all government officials and employees, including his fellow workers in the showbiz industry, to take drug tests, saying they have the responsibility to provide the Filipino public with a good example.

“Atin pong pinupuri si Sen. Padilla sa kanyang position na dapat ma-protektahan ang mga Filipino, mga opisyal at kawani ng pamahalaan, kasama na ang kanyang mga fellow workers sa showbiz industry, sa mga masasamang epekto ng illegal na droga,” Barbers said.

In his anti-drug crusade, Barbers, chairman of the House committee on dangerous drugs, has filed resolution calling for House members to submit themselves to a mandatory drug test before assumption to office, and every year thereafter.

Failure to comply shall be ground to withhold salaries, wages and benefits, in addition to sanctions by civil service laws and rules.

The lawmaker from Mindanao said the recent arrest of an actor in a drug buy-bust operation was the reason that prompted him to call on all Filipino movie production outfits, directors and talent agents to subject celebrities under their stable to undergo drug testing before engaging their professional services.

“Alam ko na halos lahat ng ating mga artista ay drug-free o malinis sa usapin ng illegal na droga. Pero meron din na naliligaw ng landas, na gumagamit o minsan nagtutulak pa ng illegal na droga,” he said.

“Kaya hinihiling at hinihikayat ko ang hanay ng ating showbiz industry na tumulong sa kampanya laban sa droga sa pamamagitan ng pag-police ng kanilang ranks at i-subject ang kanilang mga talents sa drug test bago bigyan ng project,” he added.

Barbers said that while mandatory drug testing, if done randomly and suspicion-less, may be unconstitutional as declared by the Supreme Court, it is the right of every employer – government or private entities – to craft anti-drug policies to compel their employees for a drug test.

“Employers, may they be private or government entities, may craft policies to ensure all their employees are drug-free. It would best or worry-free for them that their employees or would-be employees are not into illegal drugs,” he said.

In the United States, he said, the US Supreme Court (Board of Education vs. Earls, 536 U.S. (2002) has upheld the constitutionality of mandatory drug testing by public schools of students participating in extracurricular activities like sports.

“Here in the Philippines, I think it is not unconstitutional to subject to mandatory drug tests all police and military applicants, gun owners, security guards and other security related services. Prior to employment, civil servants and employees in the private sector should also be subjected to drug tests,” he said.

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Ryan Ponce Pacpaco