Two provincial employees earlier resigned after failing drug tests

By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga

An employee of the Negros Occidental provincial government, along with two others, were arrested Saturday morning following a buy-bust operation at Purok Balinday in Bacolod City’s Barangay 2.

Police identified the arrested government employee as Francisco Nuñal. He was apprehended alongside Waren Abalos, the main subject of the operation; and Marvic Diolay.

Police Station 7 (PS7) commander, Police Major Sherlock Gabana, said the station considers both Alabos and Nuñal as high-value drug targets.

Police moved in on the suspects after they handed over one sachet of suspected shabu in exchange for P500.

A follow-up search further yielded three elongated sachets of suspected shabu, drug paraphernalia, and an improvised firearm.

Police estimate the market value of seized illegal drugs at P150,000.

The three face illegal drugs charges and presently detained at PS7.

Last March, two Negros Occidental provincial government employees who had previously tested positive for drugs quit their posts. According to Provincial Human Resource Management head, Atty. Annabelle Palic, the two did not provide specific reasons as to why they tendered their resignations.

The two employees, a male and a female, were part of the 697 provincial government employees subjected to random drug test last October./DGB, WDJ