MANILA — Some 184,252 drug surrenderers have graduated from the government’s Recovery and Wellness Program (RWP) across the country.
This was bared by the Philippine National Police (PNP) and the Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) during the #RealNumbers press briefing in Camp Crame Monday.
PNP Chief Oscar Albayalde said such figure, which was recorded from July 1, 2016 to April 30, 2018, can be broken down to 79,099 surrenderers who graduated from the PNP-initiated RWP and 105,153 from supported community centers.
The PNP Directorate for Investigation and Detective Management (DIDM), meanwhile, reported that there have been 75,336 cases referred for prosecution resulting in 49,034 cases filed in court.
According to the PNP Internal Affairs Service, 302 uniformed personnel and eight non-uniformed personnel have tested positive for illegal drugs, and 265 have been dismissed from the service.
Out of 504 government workers arrested, 217 are elected officials, 239 are government employees and 48 are uniformed personnel.
Since July 1, 2016 to April 30, 2018, PHP20.23 billion worth of drugs and laboratory equipment have been seized
In the same period, Albayalde pointed out that the PNP conducted 98,799 drug operations, resulting in the arrest of 142,069 drug personalities and the deaths of 4,251.
Albayalde said that the government crackdown on drugs will continue unrelentingly “until the last drug lord and drug pusher is caught”.
The PNP continues to provide active support and complementing law enforcement action to the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency by virtue of Presidential Memorandum Order No. 17 that restored the PNP to full operational status in the government anti-illegal drug drive effective December 4, 2017.
“There has been no let-up in the anti-illegal drugs campaign. All PNP anti-illegal drugs efforts remain active and operational on a national scale and further cascaded as a strategy translated into operational and tactical terms by lower units down the line,” Albayalde said.
He noted that the PNP’s anti-illegal drugs strategy, dubbed as ‘Project Double Barrel’, continues with renewed vigor and intensity to attack the illegal drugs problem on two strategic fronts — supply reduction by hitting hard on high value targets, traffickers and suppliers; and demand reduction by persuasive dialogue with known drug personalities thru Oplan Tokhang.
“PNP anti-illegal drug operations had been relentless and uncompromising throughout the entire period that we were given a new lease on waging this campaign with greater efficiency, and with fewer violent confrontations between law enforcers and offenders,” the PNP chief noted. ( Benjamin Pulta/PNA)
