LINGAYEN, Pangasinan, Oct. 8 (PIA) - The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) reported that more than 80 percent of barangays in Pangasinan are now drug-cleared.

Agent Dexter Asayco, PDEA provincial chief, said out of the 1, 271 drug-affected barangays in the province, 1,030 or 81.03 percent are now drug-cleared.

Asayco said four more barangays were added to the drug-cleared villages for the third quarter of the year.

These are Maya in Infanta town; San Andres and San Aurelio in Balungao as cleared by the Regional Oversight Committee and San Jose in San Nicolas as cleared by the National Adjudication Board.

"Continuous pa rin ang validation namin and 12 municipalities have been endorsed to the Regional Oversight Committee to be drug cleared but there is a need for these towns to submit new documentary requirement and evidences," Asayco said during the Joint Meeting of the Provincial Peace and Order Council (PADAC) and Provincial Anti-Drug Abuse Council (PADAC) held in Lingayen town recently.

Dagupan City and San Quintin will be recommended as soon as they complete their documentation, he added.

Asayco reiterated that it is only the National Adjudication Board and not the Regional Adjudication Board which can delist a local government unit once it becomes part of the Inter-Agency Drug Information Database (IDID).

PDEA has earlier declared 31 towns and one city as drug-cleared.

These are Alaminos City and the towns of Agno, Aguilar, Anda, Alcala, Binalonan, Bugallon, Burgos, Dasol, Laoac, Mabini, Malasiqui, Mapandan, Natividad, San Jacinto, San Nicolas, Sta. Maria, Sison, Lingayen, Bayambang, Mangatarem, Bautista, Rosales, Labrador, Calasiao, Villasis, San Manuel, Sta. Barbara, Mangaldan, Urbiztondo and Tayug.

Latest addition is Basista.

The municipality of Sto. Tomas is the only drug-free town since the campaign started. (AMB/VHS/PIA Pangasinan)