(File photo)
MANILA – The Philippines is in a "good situation" in terms of fighting the illegal drug menace, the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) bared on Thursday.
In an interview with ABS-CBN News Channel, PDEA spokesperson Derrick Carreon said more areas in the country are now drug-cleared as the government implements a holistic approach to curb illegal drugs.
"We hold to our belief that our (illegal drug) situation is still good and that right now if you will allow us to explain that, out of the 42,046 barangays in the Philippines, drug-cleared barangays now number about 26,093 with drug-affected barangays only at 9,414. But again as explained by (PDEA) Director General Wilkins Villanueva, rest assured that we are in a good situation where the government is on top of the situation,’’ Carreon said.
He added that this approach includes key strategies such as demand reduction, rehabilitation, and reintegration.
He, meanwhile, said PDEA also continues to go after big-time targets and syndicates in compliance with the directive of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.
Citing its latest operations, Carreon said PDEA had two successful operations on July 3 -- one in Banawe St., Quezon City which yielded 40 kilos of shabu with an estimated street value of PHP272 million and another one in Cavite province which resulted in the confiscation of 220 kilos of shabu worth PHP1.496 billion.
On Aug. 12, PDEA together with other law enforcement agencies seized 40 kilos of shabu worth PHP272 million. This was followed by the seizure of 360 kilos of shabu in another buy-bust operation in Sunshine Village in Pozzorubio, Pangasinan.
Carreon said these operations disprove allegations of a resurgence in the proliferation of illegal drugs.
“We are thankful that again, we were able to intercept these huge volumes of dangerous drugs but then if we look at the daily reports that are coming in or being turned in by our operating units, it's not just us but even the PNP (Philippine National Police) because we also monitor their operations. If you would peruse from the ground during the implementation of daily operations, there are no volumes amounting to no more than 200 grams arising from daily operations of our units as well as that of the PNP,’’ Carreon pointed out. (PNA)
