Attending as the keynote speaker during the celebration of the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking (IDADAIT), Congressman–elect Ferdinand Alexander A. Marcos III shared important priority areas which can help strengthen efforts on drug abuse prevention and control.   

  “Preventive education, treatment, rehabilitation, reintegration, and advocacy,” Congressman-elect Marcos emphasized these focus areas of the Philippine Anti-Illegal Drugs Strategy to ensure continued success in the domestic setting.  

  He mentioned that a clear indicator that anti-drug priorities are being implemented effectively is the institutionalization of community-based rehabilitation programs in the Philippine setting. The IDADAIT celebration, he said, is timely for highlighting these gains. “We are setting best practices in the ASEAN and our neighbors in the region are replicating our best practices,” he added.  

 Congressman-elect Marcos believes that the campaign against illegal drugs is an investment for the future. “We are doing this for the youth. Each one of us must commit to the cause and work hand in hand to create safeguards and safety-nets to protect sectors against illegal and dangerous drugs.” 

These remarks were made by Congressman-elect Marcos during the celebration of the 2022 IDADAIT. Also tagged as the “World Drug Day”, the IDADAIT is an international event which primarily aims to strengthen action and cooperation in achieving a world free of drug abuse among United Nations (UN) member states.  

The celebration was led by the Dangerous Drugs Board and is anchored on the UN-prescribed theme, “Addressing drug challenges in health and humanitarian crises.” As the world continues to witness health and humanitarian crises from the COVID-19 to illegal drug abuse, the need to address these on a global scale has been apparent.   

  The IDADAIT celebration also featured a Seminar-Workshop on Developing Effective Public Awareness Campaign Against Drug Use and Illicit Trafficking headlined by experts from the Philippine Information Agency and participated by Information Officers from different agencies and organizations. 

  IDADAIT is observed simultaneously in all member countries of the United Nations every 26th Day of June as per resolution signed during the UN General Assembly on December 07, 1987. The commemoration of the IDADAIT in the country was institutionalized by virtue of Presidential Proclamation No. 264 dated June 1, 1988. For this year, since the date of the IDADAIT 2022 falls on a Sunday, the celebration was held on 27 June 2022 instead.