By Christopher Lloyd Caliwan/PNA
MANILA — The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) has joined the list of government offices compliant with quality management standards.
PDEA Director General Aaron N. Aquino formally received the ISO 9001:2015 certification from Renato V. Navarette, President and Managing Director of the Certification International Philippines (CIP), during its flag-raising ceremony at the PDEA National Headquarters in Quezon City on Monday.
“PDEA is now a proud recipient of the revised version of an International Organization for Standardization, or ISO 9001 certification, affirming its commitment in implementing a quality management program to ensure optimum client satisfaction,” Aquino said in a statement Tuesday.
ISO 9001:2015 defines the benchmark that provides a framework of globally-recognized principles of quality management system (QMS) including customer focus, leadership, engagement of people, process approach, improvement, evidence-based decision-making and relationship management.
The PDEA’s ISO 9001:2015 certification covers the frontline services of the agency, in particular its regulatory functions through Compliance Service (CS) under Director Agnes D. Mandap, which is responsible for processing and issuing permits and licenses to industry partners, medical practitioners, pharmaceutical companies, suppliers and retailers, and regulate and control the movement of dangerous drugs, and controlled precursors and essential chemicals (CPECs) to prevent diversion; and PDEA Laboratory Service under Director Derrick Arnold C. Carreon, for the qualitative and quantitative examination of seized drug evidence, and its subsequent destruction sanctioned by court order, and drug testing of arrested drug personalities during anti-drug operations.
“PDEA proves once again that its frontline services continue to adhere to world-class standards. The agency, through Compliance Service and Laboratory Service, has now joined the ranks of prestigious ISO-certified government agencies after passing stringent audit stages, workshops, and accreditation process,” the PDEA chief said.
According to Aquino, the certification is valid for three years — October 10, 2018 until October 9, 2021.
The PDEA ISO-accreditation was made possible with the assistance of PDEA support services composed of the Administrative and Human Resource Service, Logistics Management Service, Financial Management Service, PDEA Academy, Information and Technology Management Division under the Plans and Operations Service, and the Internal Quality Audit Team.
“The PDEA’s ISO-certification was not handed on a silver platter. It is a product of the ISO Core Team’s hard work, dedication and commitment. With the adoption of ISO principles geared toward responsive public service, PDEA is well on its way to realizing its vision to become a highly credible and competent lead anti-drug agency by 2020,” Aquino noted.