Recent drug ops not related to polls – PDEA

MANILA, Philippines — Recent anti-drug operations, which resulted in the recovery of multibillion pesos worth of shabu, were not related to the elections in May, Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) Director General Wilkins Villanueva said.

The PDEA chief cited the 1.5 metric tons of shabu worth P12 billion confiscated by agents of the National Bureau of Investigation in Infanta, Quezon on Tuesday and 166 kilos of shabu valued at P1.088 billion in Valenzuela City last week.

“We cannot relate and we should not relate this to the elections. Ginagawa na natin ito ever since,” Villanueva said in an interview over dzBB.

He cited the close coordination among law enforcement agencies in the campaign against illegal drugs.

“Dati nagtataguan kami. The main difference between our operations now and before is that we share vital intelligence at pinagtutulungan namin,” Villanueva said.

He said members of drug syndicates have resorted to ”shipside smuggling” or use the country’s porous territorial waters amid heightened security in airports and seaports.

Despite the government’s intensified campaign, Villanueva said international syndicates continue to bring in illegal drugs because there are still users.

When he assumed office in 2016, President Duterte noted that there are around four million drug dependents in the country.

Villanueva said Duterte’s successor should sustain the war on illegal drugs.

“Dapat ituloy natin at ang pagpapatuloy nito dapat papunta na doon sa patapos na rehabilitation and reformation program,” he said.