PNP to update list of anti-drug drive’s priority targets

PHILIPPINE  NATIONAL  Police (PNP) chief Gen. Guillermo Eleazar on Monday ordered chiefs of police to update the list of priority targets, including police involved in the illegal drug trade, in an effort to further step up the campaign.

“Hindi nagpahinga ang mga sindikato ng droga kahit sa panahon ng pandemya kaya hinihikayat ko din ang ating mga stakeholders at community partners na tulungan kami sa laban na ito (Drug syndicates continue with their operations even during a pandemic. We encourage our stakeholders and community partners to help us in this fight),” Eleazar said.

He assured that the renewed campaign against illegal drugs includes running after erring policemen who are involved in the illegal drugs trade.

Last week, a policeman assigned in Tarlac City, tagged as a suspected protector and financier of some drug pushers in the province, was arrested in a buy-bust.

Eleazar vowed to dismiss the policeman from service.

“We assure our kababayan that we will not tolerate abuses and wrongdoings in our ranks in our aggressive campaign against illegal drugs just like what we have shown in the last five years when hundreds of our personnel were dismissed from the service for illegal drugs involvement,” he said.

Following the arrests of drug suspects in a series of operations, police is working with the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency for the destruction of the confiscated illegal drugs.

An estimated 809 kilos of shabu, worth PHP5.5 billion, were seized last week in separate operations in the provinces of Zambales, Bataan and Cavite.

Police said this is the campaign's biggest drug haul this year so far.

“The confiscation of more or less 809 kilos of shabu last week is proof that illegal drug syndicates still have a market in the country and that is the reason why we need to further step up our campaign down to the community level, with the distributors or the sellers as the priority targets,” Eleazar said.

Suspected big-time drug pushers died in the operations in Zambales where 500 kilos of shabu were seized and in a separate operation in Bacoor, Cavite where 181 kilos of shabu were also confiscated. (Christopher Lloyd Caliwan)