‘Guided by direction of Duterte’s Sona,’ PNP to recalibrate Oplan Tokhang

PNP Chief Oscar Albayalde. INQ PHOTO/ JAM STA ROSA

The Philippine National Police (PNP) will recalibrate Oplan Tokhang, the government program on the war against illegal drugs, PNP Chief Director General Oscar Albayalde said on Monday.

“Guided by the strategic direction set by President Rodrigo Duterte in his State of the Nation Address he delivered last week, we are re-calibrating our operation thrust […] to sync well with the national policy,” Albayalde said in the press briefing at Camp Crame.

“Thus, we can expect that our intensified campaign against illegal drugs and criminality would be absolutely relentless and chilling,” he added, referencing Duterte’s words during the Sona.

The police chief said that PNP will reassess the effectivity of certain programs and the officers themselves, as per the best practices recommended by the PNP oversight committee.

“Pag-aaralan ‘yong lahat ng accomplishments, after this we’ll start with the deliberation of the different performances nung ating mga commanders on the ground from the city to the provincial directors, down to the station level.  From there we will deliberate on their performances,” Albayalde said.

“Kung makita natin na medyo not at par o below ‘yong kanilang performances, then doon natin siguro pupukpukin […] if we have to relieve some of the city directors and the provincial directors, we will do so,” he vowed.

He said that PNP echoes the President’s sentiments that the war on drugs “is far from over,” and claimed that the move is aimed at helping the drug users, especially those who have yet to surrender to authorities.

“I have directed the PNP oversight committee of illegal drugs to recalibrate Tokhang to be more relentless in accounting for the remaining 1,656 drug users in our watchlist, as of last week,” Albayalde noted.

READ: PNP admits 4,251 killed in war on drugs

“Surgical and chilling will be the trademark of the reinvigorated anti-illegal drugs and anti-criminality campaign,” he claimed.

However, he reiterated that the police will still abide with the rule of law, even if the drug war will be enhanced.

“But of course, we will not do away with the safeguards, ‘yong sinasabi nating pag-sunod sa rule of law,” he said.

READ: Int’l, local professors validate 5,000 deaths in PH due to war on drugs

According to government data dubbed as #RealNumbersPH, more than 4,000 individuals have died due to the drug war since President Duterte took office.

However, a study from different universities puts the number at more than 5,000, while administration critics have claimed that casualties range between 13,000 to more than 20,000. /je

READ: ‘Too judgmental,’ says Pacquiao as Trillanes notes 20,000 drug war deaths