‘PDEA, PNP can still work together’
The Philippine National Police (PNP) and the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) do not have to operate exclusively, as they can work as partners in the government’s war against illegal drugs, Senate President Aquilino Pimentel III said yesterday.
Pimentel said that President Duterte was not disappointed with the performance of the PDEA as the lead agency in the war on drugs, but was just stating a fact that the agency does not have enough manpower to perform its task nationwide.
He said the PDEA has been doing its job but with just around 2,000 personnel, it can only do so much to stop illegal drugs in the country. Pimentel said the President
could order either the PDEA or PNP to take the lead in the war against drugs but this does not mean that they could not work together.
To start things off, Pimentel said that the two agencies could discuss strategies and operational matters together, including the disciplining of personnel.
“It’s the call of the President. If it would remain with the PDEA then a memorandum of agreement with the PNP for the manpower complement,” Pimentel told radio station dwIZ.
“If it would be returned to the PNP, then there could be a MOA with the PDEA for overall guidance, advice or strategy,” he added.
Pimentel said that there should not be too much fuss over which agency should lead the war on drugs because the assumption is that their personnel are all well-trained to perform their tasks.
With regard to concerns about the abuses allegedly committed by members of the PNP, Pimentel said that there are internal processes supervised by the PNP-Internal Affairs Service. Furthermore, the Office of the Ombudsman is on hand to investigate cases of wrongdoing.
Pimentel said that what is more important now is for the executive branch to start focusing on cutting off the supply chain of illegal drugs in order to win the war.
He said that intelligence reports are readily available to the agencies concerned including information about suppliers of illegal drugs in the country, both domestic and foreign.
“If there is no supply then there is nothing to distribute. Let’s go after the big time suppliers. This should be the priority,” Pimentel said.
Meanwhile, the PDEA is taking steps to strengthen its financial investigation capability to prevent suspected drug lords from using their funds.
PDEA director general Aaron Aquino said yesterday the four-day workshop on financial investigation held in Puerto Princesa City, Palawan from Nov. 24-25 would help the agency in addressing the drug problem in the country.
“The purpose of this activity is truly very crucial to the success of our operations against the multi-billion pesos illegal drugs industry,” said Aquino in a statement.
Thirty five personnel from PDEA and the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) took part in the workshop.
“The efforts and resources used by PDEA in tracking down and arresting illegal drug dealers and manufacturers will just definitely go to waste if we cannot freeze the assets of these criminals while they are being prosecuted,” said Aquino.
Aquino pointed out the need to improve PDEA’s intelligence operations, investigation procedures and collaboration with the AMLC and other financial institutions to ensure drug traffickers would not be able to use their funds to buy their way out prison.