Senator Sotto takes voluntary drug testing

Senate Majority Floor Leader Vicente "Tito" Sotto III, saying public officials should set a good example to the public, voluntarily underwent an illegal drugs testing at the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA). "I believe that this is vital in assuring our people that their elected representatives are drug-free and to remove the cloud of suspicion generated by the arrest of a member of Congress for alleged drug trafficking in Hong Kong," said Sotto on Wednesday. Sotto, the former Dangerous Drugs Board chief, was pertaining to Ilocos Sur Rep. Ronald Singson (1st District), who was arrested in Hong Kong on July 11 for illegal drugs possession. Singson was arrested at the Chek Lap Kok International Airport in Hong Kong where he was found with 26.1 grams of cocaine and two tablets of diazepam also known as Valium. Due to this incident, Sotto encouraged other public officials to undergo illegal drugs testing too. "There is nothing wrong if elected officials voluntarily submit themselves for drug-testing," he said. He said the only thing that the Supreme Court had earlier deemed unconstitutional was the mandatory nature of illegal drugs testing for candidates running for public office. In a separate interview with reporters, Senators Ramon Bong Revilla and Ralph Recto approved of Sotto's idea. "Walang problema yan (That's not a problem)," said Bong Revilla. "That's possible. I don't have any problem with that," added Recto. Sotto is the principal author of Republic Act 9165 or the Comprehensive Drugs Act of 2002.- GMANews.TV