Villar, DOH open drug rehab center in Las Pinas

Sen. Cynthia Villar and Department of Health (DOH) Secretary Francisco Duque led the soft opening today of the Las Pinas Drug Abuse Treatment and Rehabilitation Center in Barangay Ilaya.

The facility has a 2- storey building for female occupants with 86-patient capacity and a 3-storey building for male occupants with 158-patient capacity. The Villar family renovated two idle buildings formerly assigned to the Vice Mayors League of the Philippines and the Provincial Board Members League of the Philippines and transformed it into a rehab center.

In return the villar family built two-three storey bldg for both the vice mayors league and board members league.

"The rehab center is part of our contribution to the administration's campaign against illegal drugs. Through this facility, we can now have a place in Las Piñas and neighboring cities to transform drug-dependent individuals into fully responsible and productive members of our society," Villar said.

Villar and Duque was also joined by Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) Usec. Ricojudge Janvier Echiverri of the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Establishment and Support of Drug Abuse Treatment and Rehabilitation Centers during the ribbon-cutting.

The rehab center was unveiled in December last year as part of former Senate President Manny Villar's birthday celebration. President Rodrigo Duterte was the Guest of Honor during the occasion.

The drug rehab facility sits on a property formerly owned by the Philippine Reclamation Authority but bought by DOH through its 2018 budget. The facility also has an isolation room, doctor's room and laboratory room. It also has a kitchen area and dining area which can be used also as a seminar area.

Aside from the drug rehab center, the Villar Social Institute for Poverty Alleviation and Governance (Villar SIPAG) farm schools also provided training programs for drug surrenderers. The 12-week training program taught them farm skills which they could use as an alternative source of livelihood.

The soft opening was also attended by representatives from DOH, DILG, Mayor Mel Aguilar and the Las Pinas Council and barangay officials.