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CEBU CITY, Philippines - Five students will be selected from each high school campus in Cebu City for random drug testing, which starts February 16.
They will be chosen by a panel that includes parents and teachers ? by lottery if needed to ensure a random selection, according to guidelines issued by the Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB).
Even if a student?s urine sample tests positive, the result has to be verified in a confirmatory test and will not be made a basis for expulsion.
Private school educators said they would support the process but also appealed to authorities to focus on stopping the source of illegal drugs.
In a statement, the Coordinating Council of Private Educational Associations (COCOPEA) said it supports ?in principle? the government's drive against illegal drugs to protect youths.
?While COCOPEA acknowledges the value of these preventive measures, the association maintains that the government's campaign against illegal drugs should substantially focus on the pushers and not the victims ? such as the students,? the association said in a statement dated January 29.
While it is concerned about the political motivation behind the conduct of the random drug tests, COCOPEA such proposal should not be dismissed but should have specific conditions to stamp out illegal drugs and achieve ?a drug free studentry.?
It said the Comprehensive Dangerous Drug Acts of 2002 also provides that high school and tertiary students shall undergo random drug tests to be shouldered by the government.
To avoid abuses, COCOPEA said the random drug tests should be done with full consent, cooperation and participation of the school and its administrators.
Five presidents of organizations of educational institutions signed the statement.
They are Monsignor. Gerardo Santos of the Catholic Educators Association of the Philippines, Dr. Vicente Fabella of the Philippine Association of Colleges and Universities, Dr. Jose Paulo Campos of the Philippine Association of Private Schools, Colleges and Universities, Dr. Benjamin Yngente of the Association of Christian Schools, Colleges and Universities and Engineer Constancio Sia of Technical Vocational Schools Association of the Philippines president.
Monsignor Santos is also president of COCOPEA.
?We would like to coordinate closely with parents,? said Recaredo Borgonia, DepEd acting director for Central Visayas. ?Parents, generally, are in favor (of the drug testing) because they see it as one way of solving their problems. You, as a parent, would like to know if your child is using drugs.?
Borgonia said 10 teams from DepEd Manila will be in Cebu on February 16 to oversee the tests.
At least five students per school in Cebu City and the rest of Central Visayas will be selected.
?The target number will be determined by the team. I think there are about 50 high schools in Cebu City. The teams are staying for 10 days,? he said.
Before the drug test, a selection board composed of parents, faculty members and teachers will be convened. The selection board would choose the students who will undergo the test for shabu and marijuana.
?It is ideal for parents to accompany their students as they undergo the test. That is why there is a need to have close coordination with the parents,? Borgonia said.
The high school will submit a list of students from first year to fourth year.
From this list, the board will select at random who will be tested. Each student will be numbered chronologically regardless of year level, section, sex and age.
Students who refuse to undergo a drug test shall be dealt with in line with the school?s Student Handbook and Manual of Regulations.
?Refusal to undergo testing shall, at no time, give rise to presumptions of drug use or dependency; provided further that the school may impose sanctions on such refusal other than the offense of drug use or dependency,? according to the guidelines for random drug tests approved by Dangerous Drugs Board Chairman Vicente Sotto III.
The chosen students will be asked to submit a list of prescription medicines, vitamins and food supplements that they have taken within the last five days.
Urine specimens will be collected following guidelines of the Department of Health (DOH) and duly accredited laboratories.
The result will be confidential and should not be posted by the school.
If a student tests positive in the initial screening, the testing coordinator will tell the parents and the student involved that a confirmatory test should be done. This should not be viewed as a ground for expulsion or any disciplinary action against the student, according to the guidelines.
The result of the confirmatory test will be sent by the laboratory in a sealed envelope to the drug testing coordinator who will disclose its contents to the parents and the student.
?All students and their parents shall be notified in writing on the process and manner by which the random drug testing shall be conducted. Such notification may be sent at any time during the school term. Failure to return the acknowledgment receipt shall not be a bar to the conduct of drug testing,? the guidelines said.
The copy of test results will not include the identities of the students tested. It will be submitted by the school head to the DepEd division superintendent for secondary schools, the Commission on Higher Education regional director for tertiary schools and Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda) training administrator to evaluate the effectiveness of drug abuse prevention programs.
?In the event that it is determined that the student is a drug dependent, the school may impose the appropriate sanctions against the students as provided for in the school's Student Handbook and the Manual of Regulations of Private Schools, provided that in the case of public secondary schools, if the student is later on found to have been rehabilitated, the student shall then be allowed to re-enroll,? the guidelines said.
?Positive results nor drug dependency shall in no way cause the expulsion of the student nor shall it be used to advance any administrative, criminal and legal action against the student,? it added.
The student has to undergo three months observation and counseling with the supervision of a facility accredited by the DOH or physician in consultation with the student's parents.
Borgonia said that based on his experience as an educator, high school students who turn to illegal drugs do so because of family problems.
?The family should be supportive and the student may change his ways. But this is only applicable to cases that are not very serious,? he said.
