By Ruth Abbey Gita-Carlos | Philippine News Agency
MANILA – President Rodrigo Roa Duterte on Monday (March 21) said he would hold a meeting with his successor to discuss the drug menace that continues to “haunt” the country.
In his taped Talk to the Peopled aired Tuesday morning on state-run PTV-4, Duterte said he would ask the country’s next president to continue his anti-narcotics drive because many drug offenders are still on the loose.
“I hope to… ‘Pag makausap ko pagkatapos ng elections and a new presidential shall have been elected, I said there is a time for us, me to bring, invite him dito. Ito siguro ang sasabihin ko sa kanya, patayin mo talaga itong mga (After elections and once a new president is elected, I said there is a time for us to meet. I will invite him to bring [up the drug problem]. This is perhaps what I will tell him, ‘Kill those [drug offenders]),” Duterte said.
Duterte’s statement came after Interior Secretary Eduardo Año reported that a total of 1,775 kilos of shabu and 421.5 kilos of marijuana worth P13.2 billion have been seized during the anti-drug operations from March 6 to 19.
Around 2,471 individuals have been arrested, while two others have died during the operations, Año said in a meeting with Duterte and select Cabinet officials at Malacañan Palace in Manila on Monday night.
“Ito po ang pinakamalaking nahuli sa entire Philippine history in one time na pagkakasakote sa illegal drugs. At patuloy pa rin po nating paiigtingin ang ating kampanya laban sa illegal drugs Mr. President sapagkat gusto po nating tuluy-tuloy ito upang siguruhing ligtas ang ating mga kababayan sa masamang dulot ng illegal na droga (The seized illegal drugs are the biggest haul in the entire Philippine history in one time. And we will continue to intensify our campaign against illegal drugs, Mr. President, because we want to keep our countrymen safe from the scourge of illegal drugs),” Año said.
Duterte agreed with Año, and ordered the continuation of the war against the proliferation of illegal drugs.
“Let us go and look for them. Hunt them down,” Duterte said. “This [drug problem] will continue. Drugs will haunt us today, tomorrow and malayo pa ang (and it is far [from over]).”
Duterte reiterated that the drug problem remains a threat to public safety, stressing that it will continue to create “multiple problems” since illegal drugs make users “insane.”
“Ang problema nito, it induces insanity sa mga tao. Ito, papatay na naman. Kapag walang pera, mag-hold up, lahat na. Multiple ang problema dito (The problem here is it induces insanity among users. They might kill and hold up people. There will be multiple problems here),” he said.
On February 28, Duterte expressed hope that his successor would continue his anti-narcotics campaign, saying he was “very worried of the resurgence of the drug problem.” (PNA)
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