CITY Anti-Drug Abuse Council (Cadac) again expressed Thursday opposition to Republic Act (RA) 9344 as they promote Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Week slated November 15-21.

The Republic Act (RA) 9344 is also known as the Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act of 2006.

"The Manny Pacquiao Blog". Click here for stories and updates on the Filipino boxing champ.

Cadac action officer Eliseo Braganza Jr. said the council still sees RA 9344 as "preventive of effective law enforcement."

"We have sought amendment of the law. The council passed a resolution to the House of Congress a request to amend the law however we did not provide specific policies because that is the role of the legislators. For now, what we know is there's already a bill seeking amendment on this," Braganza said.

RA 9344 exempts offenders who are 15 years of age during the commission of the crime from criminal liability.

It also exempts offenders below 18 years old from several crimes, which include vagrancy, prostitution, mendicancy and sniffing of rugby or other inhalants. Instead, the law mandates that counseling and treatment programs for child offenders.

Braganza said to his knowledge there have been cases of minors making full use of the law, which exempts them from imprisonment. "May mga report na ang mga bata, they actually carry with them birth certificates to prove that they cannot be imprisoned," Braganza said.

"It would have been better is before the law was approved there is already a strong supporting enforcement at the root-level. We do not have that strong support system when it comes to apprehension and what happened after apprehension," Braganza said.

"There really is a need to amend the law because it impedes enforcement. This does not help the community but it is only creating monsters within the community. You are not disciplining those kids but you are only pampering them. Unya kung mudako na sila (and when they grow up) the crimes they’ll commit will be worse," Braganza said.

Braganza, however, admitted that there has been no official dialogue between the council and bodies supporting RA 9344’s provisions for the protection of minors such as the City Council Committee on women, children, and family relations chaired by Councilor Angela Librado-Trinidad.

"As to documentation, we did not compile statements expressing the helplessness or the frustration of law enforcers or the barangay chiefs in prosecuting minor offenders but nakikita naman yan sa data na dumadami at mas bumabata ang edad ng mga crime offenders," Braganza said.

Braganza updated the media on the number of drug cases in the city as of October this year.

The City Prosecutor’s Office has received 120 drug cases, 123 information filed, three cases dismissed, 15 for filing of information in court, and eight under preliminary investigation.

The Regional Trial Court Branch 9 has 12 cases raffled, 51 cases disposed, and 831 pending cases (251 cases on drug pushing, 18 drug use case, and 562 cases of drug possession).

Braganza said Cadac maintains ongoing drug-free barangay programs and seminars on drug-prevention. “We have conducted 101 seminar-workshops in schools and 245 in barangays,” Braganza said.

Under the DILG (Department of Interior and Local Government) memorandum circular 2009-09 all provincial governors, city/municipal mayors, barangay heads, councils at all levels, DILG regional directors and others concerned should have unified actions against illegal drugs and other substances, Braganza said.

"This is under Republic Act 9165 (Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act) that these local officials should have actions against drug usage and its prevention in their areas or else they will be sanctioned. We are also practicing that barangay chiefs should report to (Cadac) drug related information or activities in their barangays or else there will be corresponding sanctions against them. By next yesr we expect this program to be in full implementation," he added. (JCZ)