Vice President Sara Duterte said Friday she is strongly in favor of mandatory drug testing for government officials, based on a bill filed by her brother, Davao 1st District Rep. Paolo Duterte, at the House of Representative.
Duterte even stated that she is “ready” to be the first public official to undergo a hair follicle drug test.
House Bill No. 10744 mandates that all elected and appointed government officials, including the President, must undergo random hair follicle drug tests every six months.
Additionally, the bill proposes voluntary random drug testing for candidates running for electoral posts within 90 days before Election Day. Officials who test positive may face suspension or termination from office under this proposed legislation.
Former presidential spokesperson Harry Roque took to Facebook to share copies of the bill, captioning it with a pointed challenge: “Time for Follicle Test PBBM!” referring to President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr.
“First of all, we really need to ensure that our public officials are in the right minds, myself included,” Duterte said mostly in Tagalog during an ambush interview in Davao City.
The Vice President affirmed her willingness to undergo a drug test through a “third party,” as requested by the public, to set an example. This is also in response to Roque’s earlier challenge to the Duterte siblings to “lead by example” and undergo drug testing.
“Yes, yes. Yes, I’ve been reading the public appeals. We will just need to finalize when it will happen. I think there should be, first and foremost, a third party involved in the testing, and perhaps there should be more than one laboratory to ensure that the results are validated,” Duterte said.
“So, with details like that, I want everything to be ironed out for those who are calling for it. Let’s conduct the drug test,” she added.
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