Local executives and officials of the various national agencies and private groups that have joined forces in the all-out war against the drug menace will come up with a more comprehensive and effective action plan that seeks to revolutionize the anti-illegal drugs campaign nationwide.

The intensified drive for a drug-free society, spearheaded by the Department of Interior and Local Government and the 1.2 million-strong Union of Local Authorities of the Philippines (ULAP), will make use of a "viable, honest-to-goodness system that can be measured in concrete terms to determine its degree of success and continually enhance its effectiveness."

All 78 provinces will each set up its action plan suitable to local needs, with an efficient monitoring method, and broken down into specific projects and activities, ULAP president and Laguna Gov. Joey Lina said.

"Local government units ultimately play a pivotal role as far as the war on illegal drugs is concerned and local officials are in the frontline together with the Philippine National Police in the pursuit of action plans that will also rely heavily on the support of communities," Lina explained.

At the same time, the ULAP leadership supports a call made by DILG Secretary Alfredo Lim for a crackdown against all individuals, including local officials, found to be involved in the proliferation of illegal drugs.

"If there are bad eggs within our ranks, they should not be spared in the fight against drug lords," Lina said. "But LGUs must not be made accountable for things they cannot do. Local officials are not equipped with arms unlike the police who can effectively respond to armed resistance from drug syndicates."

The move to formulate a viable and honest-to-goodness campaign was presented during a national anti-drug forum on Valentine's day at the Philippine International Convention Center with the theme "A Drug-Free Society: The President's Gift of Love to the Filipino Family."

The forum, organized by the DILG, was participated in by governors, mayors, barangay leaders and other local officials from Luzon, DILG regional directors, and officials of the National Drug Law Enforcement and Prevention Coordinating Center, Dangerous Drugs Board, Philippine National Police, and non-government organizations, among others.

Aside from Lina who also heads the League of Provinces, leaders of the various leagues of local officials--League of Cities president and Dagupan Mayor Alipio Fernandez, Liga ng mga Barangay president James Marty Lim, and Mayor Ray Roquero of the League of Municipalities--signed a commitment of support for the intensified anti-drug war.

The forum had sought to come up with other innovative means that will have the same impact as Lim's controversial spray-painting campaign on the public consciousness regarding the evils of rampant drug abuse and the urgency of effective measures to stop the proliferation of illegal drugs.

Local officials have earlier rallied behind Lim in his campaign against the proliferation of illegal drugs, vowing to seek and pursue other measures equally effective as the controversial spray-painting campaign, according to ULAP information director Angel Tugado.

"A wholistic approach towards a more comprehensive, integrated and workable program to drastically minimize or eradicate rampant drug abuse should be the ultimate goal," Lina said.

Among the measures being considered are a nationwide drive to post in conspicuous places the names of persons arrested and charged for illegal drugs and the strengthening of the five pillars of the criminal justice system—police, prosecution, judiciary, correctional institution, and the community--with the full support of local officials through identification and surveillance of drug dealers.

Other measures include the cleansing of police ranks particularly the Narcom of scalawags, and the monitoring of drug cases filed by the police and those pending in offices of fiscals and the courts in a bid to flush out anomalies and "fixed" cases.