DECLINING DRUG SUPPLY. Intelligence monitoring showed the supply of illegal drugs in Soccksargen has declined significantly in the past three years, Lt. Col. Aldrin Gonzales, Police Regional Office-12 public information officer, said Friday (August 9, 2019). He attributed the decrease to President Duterte's continued campaign against drugs. (Photo courtesy of PRO-12 photo)
GENERAL SANTOS CITY -- The government has been “winning” the war against illegal drugs in Region 12 (Soccksargen) as reportedly shown by the significant decline in drug-related activities in the area in the past three years, police authorities said.
Lt. Col. Aldrin Gonzales, public information officer of the Police Regional Office (PRO) 12, said Friday their intelligence monitoring showed that the supply of illegal drugs in the area has continued to decrease due to President Rodrigo R. Duterte’s sustained “war on drugs”.
Gonzales said this could be indicated by the increase in the price of shabu, from PHP5,000 per gram in 2016 to almost PHP7,000 this year, due to the limited supplies entering the region.
The volume of illegal drugs recovered during operations has also decreased based on reports from local police units, he said.
Region 12 is considered a “drug-consuming region”, with supplies mainly coming in through the neighboring areas.
“This is an indication that the government’s campaigns against illegal drugs here in Soccsksargen have been effective,” Gonzales said in an interview.
From July 1, 2016 to last August 3, PRO-12 units have arrested a total of 5,656 drug personalities in 4,856 operations in parts of the region, he said, adding that some 4,316 suspects were directly involved in the illegal drug trade while 1,340 were drug users.
Gonzales said 313 suspects, mostly notorious drug pushers and suppliers, were slain in “legitimate” anti-drug operations.
He added that 280 of them were target-listed personalities, some allegedly part of illegal drug networks, while 33 were drug users.
Despite these accomplishments, PRO-12 has “not lowered (its) guard” regarding the problem and it remains their top priority, he said.
He said Brig. Gen. Eliseo Tam Rasco, the PRO-12 director, had issued stern orders to local police units to continue to intensify "Oplan Tokhang" and "Oplan Double Barrel".
“We will not stop until we clear our communities of this drug menace,” he added. (Richelyn Gubalani/PNA)
