A police station in Bucharest, as well as the first anti-drug counseling and information center within the National Anti-Drug Agency, became operational Thursday at Mall Grand Arena.
Station 26, covering the southern area of the city of Bucharest, has been relocated from its old headquarters.
The new headquarters has been arranged on an area of 1,000 square meters, on the first floor of the commercial complex, and will host the Public Order Office, Criminal Investigations Office, Criminalistics Office, as well as an Office for issuing criminal records.
Access to the police station premises will be secure and independently ensured from the limited operating hours of the mall.
A first in Romania
Mayor Daniel Băluţă drew attention to the fact that in recent years there has been an increase in drug consumption, which has become "a major problem" for Romanian society and the community.
The counseling center inaugurated on Thursday primarily targets young people at risk, as well as their families.
"Today we have a first in Romania, a partnership developed with the Ministry of Internal Affairs, through the Bucharest Municipality Police, on one hand, and together we have realized the new headquarters of Police Station 26, an extremely important one," said the mayor.
Similarly, the Chief of the Capital Police, Chief Commissioner Bogdan Berechet, stated that the relocation of Station 26 headquarters was done to "facilitate citizens' access to the police" and to shorten response times to events requiring such interventions.
1 in 10 children has consumed a drug at least once
The event was attended by the Director of the National Anti-Drug Agency (ANA), Chief Commissioner Georgiana Ramona Dabija, who appreciated the moment as "historic". After 22 years of existence, ANA is making the first center dedicated to teenagers accessible within the "Safe Space" program.
"We will provide psychosocial counseling services with the help of four psychologists and two social workers, and medical services will be provided with the support of psychiatrists and pediatricians from Obregia Hospital. (...) It is very important for all of us, it is very important for the Ministry of Internal Affairs to come up with this solution for the children in Romania, because starting today this center will be exclusively for them. It is a free and confidential service; also, for their families, who will have the opportunity to connect with other parents who have been through the same situation," Dabija specified.
According to her, nationally, one in ten children has consumed at least one type of illicit drug. Additionally, one in five people ends up in emergency services due to abusive drug consumption.