Leni: Drug war needs tweaking

Vice President Leni Robredo says she is not totally against President Duterte’s drug war, but is merely urging the administration to “tweak” what is no longer effective in the campaign.

“What I said in my interview (with Reuters) was that the government should assess if the strategy they are using is still effective,” Robredo clarified over radio station dzXL.

“Because if it’s already improper, we need to tweak it. Tweak means to change slightly,” she said. Several foreign media, including

Reuters, quoted Robredo as saying that Duterte’s drug war was “obviously not working.”

Presidential spokesman Salvador Panelo slammed Robredo’s remark, saying the Vice President’s claim lacked factual basis.

Robredo cited data from the Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB), which showed that the number of drug users in the country was 1.8 million in 2016 – when Duterte assumed the presidency.

However, she said the President himself said in a speech in February this year that there are around seven to eight million drug users in the country.

She said many of those who were killed in the drug operations were poor, adding that several policemen were also accused of abusing their power.

“We’re not saying they should stop the campaign against illegal drugs. What I’m saying is the government should step back, and assess what’s wrong with the campaign,” Robredo said.

The Vice President also advised administration officials not to be onion-skinned regarding comments on the drug war.

“They should not have onion-skin with these kind of comments because what is in line here is the reputation of the country. What’s at risk here is the life of our citizens,” she said.

The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA), however, asked the Vice President to look at the government’s accomplishments before dismissing the drug war as a failure.

PDEA director general Aaron Aquino said stopping Duterte’s anti-illegal drugs campaign will only hinder the progress they have made where more than P36 billion of narcotics were seized in a span of two years and four months, P7.6 billion of which were seized during this year alone.

He pointed out that at least 200,000 suspected drug pushers and users were arrested in 125,000 law enforcement operations while more than 15,000 barangays were cleared of the drug problem since Duterte assumed office in July 2016.

The Philippine National Police (PNP) previously reported that at least 6,800 drug suspects were killed in what authorities claimed were legitimate shootouts.

The DDB also said it was “saddened” by Robredo’s statement that the drug war is a failure.

“It seems that up until now, the Vice President is misled in understanding the anti-drug campaign. Authorities continue to address the domestic drug issues using a holistic, balanced and comprehensive approach,” the DDB said in a statement.

The anti-narcotics agency said it appears that Robredo is only looking at the law enforcement side of the campaign where thousands have been killed.

“While enforcement issues are more evident, we cannot discount the successes we have gained in the demand reduction part of the campaign,” the DDB said.

This includes the rehabilitation of 179,152 users in in 997 community-based rehabilitation programs in their respective localities.

Aquino warned of dire consequences for the country if the anti-illegal drugs campaign is stopped as drug syndicates will be back in business.

Locsin slams UN

Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin, meanwhile, accused yesterday the United Nations of speaking for drug dealers and considering them as victims of human rights violations.

“Kasi mga pu **** ina sa Geneva encourage them by holding up these h**dot as victims of human rights violation when the first and foremost human right is the protection of the law-abiding against them by the most severe measures efficient to achieve that purpose,” Locsin said in a tweet on Sunday.

On Saturday, the secretary tweeted “Hey! Drug dealers have human rights too. And they need to be heard. Thank God they have Geneva to (s) peak up for them.”

Locsin also reacted to the report on the 27 of 31 suspected cartel members who were arrested last week in a Mexico City raid and were freed by a judge.

President Andres Manuel Obrador said on Friday that the unexpected release of the criminal suspects would be investigated but cautioned against a rush to judgment.

Locsin reminded that Mexico is one of 18 countries that voted to adopt the Iceland-led resolution seeking to find out the human rights situation under the term of President Duterte.

“Mexico voted against us in Geneva. You see this is how you fight drugs. It is profitable for all concerned: officials and criminals. A win-win situation where the only losers are ordinary Mexicans but then that’s what ordinary folk are for: to be screwed,” he said.

The secretary said that “decriminalizing drugs is criminal and deserves the most extreme penalty — life imprisonment of course.”

The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) voted in July to investigate the bloody “war on drugs” in the Philippines and urged the Philippine government to do more to prevent extrajudicial killings linked to its campaign against illegal drugs.

In a close vote, the 47-member Council adopted the Iceland-initiated resolution which expressed concern that since Duterte announced his socalled war on drugs in 2016, there have been allegations that thousands of people involved in the drug trade and drug use have been killed.