NCRPO wants random bag, locker inspections in schools

National Capitol Region Police Office (NCRPO) director Chief Superintendent Guillermo Eleazar on Wednesday proposed to implement random bag and locker inspections in schools.

According to a report by GMA News' Tina Panganiban Perez on Balitanghali, Eleazar made the proposal to nip the country's drug problem in the bud.

He said that the 44,000 drug suspects arrested and the 234,000 who surrendered to authorities in the past 23 months are proof of the large scale of the drug problem in the Philippines.

Implementing the surprise inspections will help prevent the youth from getting mixed up with illegal drugs, Eleazar said, emphasizing that prevention is important.

However, the ACT Teachers party-list is against the proposal, saying that its implementation might allow Oplan Tokhang to victimize students, the report added.

Department of Education Undersecretary Jesus Mateo, meanwhile, vowed that the agency will take care of the children and their privacy. — Jessica Bartolome/RSJ, GMA News