Manila, Aug 18 (EFE).-
The alleged smell of marijuana coming from a restroom in the Philippine Senate prompted chamber officials to order mandatory drug testing for all employees on Monday.
The incident has already led to the resignation of one staff member and dozens of employees volunteering to undergo tests.
“The Senate has every intention to conduct the mandatory random drug testing for all the officials and employees,” Senate President Francis Escudero said, according to ABS-CBN broadcaster.
The controversy began last week when Senate security personnel reported detecting a marijuana-like odor in a bathroom. They claimed the restroom was used at the time only by Nadia Montenegro, an aide to Senator Robin Padilla.
Montenegro, who resigned Monday, denied being in the bathroom when the smell was noticed, saying she only carried a grape-flavored vape.
“If said alleged unusual scent, which resembled to marijuana, came from the ladies’ comfort room, then it should not be attributed to me,” she wrote in the letter dated Aug. 15.
“To prevent this baseless issue from growing any further, I would rather remove myself from the spotlight and allow the Senate to focus on its important work,” she said, stressing that her resignation should “not be misconstrued as an admission of guilt.”
Although Escudero did not clarify whether the drug tests will also apply to senators, some lawmakers have already volunteered to be tested.
The Senate controversy comes against the backdrop of the Philippines’ fraught history with anti-drug campaigns.
Former president Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs between 2016 and 2022 left at least 6,000 people dead in police operations, according to official figures, while human rights groups estimate the toll at over 30,000.
Duterte is currently detained in The Hague, awaiting trial before the International Criminal Court (ICC) on charges of crimes against humanity.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who took office in 2022, pledged a “bloodless” campaign against drugs, though groups such as Amnesty International have continued to report abuses and arbitrary arrests. EFE daa/bks/sc
