The war on drugs is intensified as the days pass. People wait to see how many die each day when they never really cared who died every day before this killing spree started. Many think that change has indeed come and evil is starting to get whipped. Thousands have surrendered and vowed a renewed life. We ask: What comes next as they profess their willingness to quit drugs?
Recently, I got the chance to visit a drug rehab facility. The local government opened the Iligan City Drug Treatment and Rehabilitation Center in August 2015. It is situated on a hillside in Barangay Abuno, about 20 minutes of uphill drive from the heart of the city. Upon entering the grounds, one sees a blue-painted building surrounded by trees and flowers, intricately landscaped to provide patients a good living environment.
All along I had thought that drug addicts were like psychotics, that they saw spaceships and demons, and that they felt like supermen. Everything changed when I got to interact with the patients, who all seemed normal: They communicated, they shared their stories. Their common denominator was regret. Although regret, as they say, always came late, the patients believed that it was never too late.
Rehab patients come from different walks of life. There are some who did well in college, and some were already successful in their chosen careers. And, of course, there were those who came from the slums. I was surprised to see a friend who went there voluntarily. He could have been in the same college as I am, reading the same textbooks and pursuing the dream of becoming a medical doctor. But for now, all he wants is to be a changed man.
Together with a volunteer from the Department of Justice who went the extra mile to apply the Therapeutic Community approach in rehabilitating the patients’ lives and conditions, I listened to how they got into drugs. It made me feel that there is truly a need for every family to take part in every member’s life. Most of the patients felt that they were of no use and that drug addiction was their only relief. One said all he did at home was eat, sleep and do drugs. He never felt that he was part of the family—only to find out that in the facility, all he did was daydream about his wife and their two kids.
The aim of the Therapeutic Community approach is to create a sense of belonging in patients, for them to recognize that they have a particular role in the community. For now their community is the rehab facility, and the members are the other patients. They set rules, particularly in functioning as individuals, from forming a queue when meals are served to arranging their hall every time there are programs for them. Each has a task. The program hinges on keeping an inclusive environment for everyone so that no one will ever feel alone, just like when they were in their homes. At the same time, they are made to feel that they have a responsibility to fulfill.
Now that there are thousands vowing to change their lives, a great challenge confronts the administration. On the part of those who surrendered is the acknowledgement that what they have done is wrong. It may be brought about by fear of the rising number of drug users and pushers getting killed on the streets, or just a simple longing for a clean life. This must be responded to in the form of assistance from every local government, for there is truth in the saying that “change is a process, not an event.” This country needs more facilities, more programs, and a society that will treat drug rehab patients with the respect due them. Perhaps it was never projected in the previous years that this time will come. I hope there are no spoilers this time.
In the end, those 40 patients at the rehab facility I visited could have chosen to stay on the streets and vowed not to do drugs anymore. But the condition that they are in right now is addiction; everything is way past their control and they need something to keep them functioning well as individuals. They have made the decision of secluding themselves for a while for they believe that after this phase in their lives, they can happily reintegrate into the community. As part of that community, we are duty-bound to accept them and treat them as normal individuals. In this way, we will make them feel one with the many as we respond to the call of curbing the number of drug users in our society. Let this be our share.
Marl Andrew Bernardo-Valdez, 24, is a fourth-year medical student at Mindanao State University-College of Medicine in Iligan City.