THE Philippine Basketball Association threw its support to the government’s renewed anti-narcotics campaign, focusing on demand reduction and rehabilitation of drug dependents.
This as the Department of the Interior and Local Government extended its “Buhay Ingatan, Droga’y Ayawan” or BIDA program in the sports arena through partnership with the country’s premier basketball league.
“The partnership of DILG and PBA will not only strengthen the campaign against illegal drugs, but will also send out a message to the PBA teams, players and fans, that the league is against and will not tolerate the adverse effects of illegal drugs,” said DILG secretary Benjamin Abalos Jr.
“We are aware that this is the first time, since its inception, that the PBA joined hands with the government in the fight against illegal drugs kaya una na po ang aming pasasalamat,” he added.
The DILG came up with this announcement during the third quarter of Game 4 of the PBA Governor’s Cup Finals between Barangay Ginebra and TNT Tropang Gilas Sunday night.
“BIDA is not only focused on supply reduction but is also centered on demand reduction. Usually, naka-focus ang mga pushers at suppliers sa mga bata. Sa basketball, kids have their idols. Whatever their idols do, susundin ng mga bata. We have to set a good example for our youth – napakalaking bagay if the players and the league themselves make a stand, saying that they are against illegal drugs,” Abalos said.
He emphasized the indispensable role of sports as a deterrent against the use of illegal drugs. “With this partnership, we expect to promote and advocate for sports as an effective solution to prevent the youth from subscribing to illegal drugs.”
The DILG chief said that through this collaboration, made official through the signing of a Memorandum of Agreement, the PBA is expected to upscale its drug testing initiatives in accordance with Republic Act No. 9165, or the “Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002” among its players and staff.
Under the agreement, PBA players will sport the BIDA program logo on their jerseys during PBA-sanctioned games and disseminate campaign collaterals and advocacy materials in an effort to increase awareness towards its widespread national platform regarding the dangers of illegal drugs.
PBA chairman Ricky Vargas and League Commissioner Willie O. Marcial also presided over the formalization of the partnership through the signing of the MOA, which they hoped would spark and reinvigorate the message of the BIDA program by leveraging the league’s audience and nationwide reach.
“Just like BIDA, we look at all the ways people get into illegal drugs and how they can be drug-free,” Vargas said.
“We in the PBA believe in the process of recovery and reformation. I am pleased to tell you that in the last 6 years, the league has been drug-free. Kasama kami sa BIDA, dahil naniniwala kami sa BIDA,” he added.
Abalos stated the partnership between the DILG and the PBA will serve as a springboard for the BIDA Workplace, a planned congregation of private companies that aims to strengthen the campaign’s directive by formulating independent drug policies.
He likewise praised the independent efforts of the PBA in maintaining a drug-free working environment. “I would like to commend the efforts of the PBA in their intervention and preventive initiatives. Rest assured that with this collaboration, we will be able to take our advocacy to new heights.”