SMUGGLING THROUGH LIFTER A PDEA agent shows reporters how 500 kilos of “shabu” (crystal meth) hidden inside a magnetic lifter slipped past customs inspection. —EDWIN BACASMAS
The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) began on Monday the performance auditing of local anti-drug abuse councils (ADACs) to ensure the effectivity of the government’s war on illegal drugs.
Acting Interior Secretary Eduardo Año pointed out that based on the Memorandum Circular 2018-159, the ADACs would be assessed based on their organization, conduct of quarterly meetings, allocation of funds for anti-drug activities, implementation of ADAC plans and programs, support for ADACs in component local government units (LGUs) and innovation.
“Kahit na puspusan ang pagkilos ng pamahalaan laban sa droga, hindi pa rin ito lubusang natutuldukan. Kailangan ng sama-samang pagkilos at aksyon lalo na ng mga ADACs para tuluyan na itong mawala,” Año said in a statement.
(Despite the government’s intensified drive against illegal drugs, we still see no end to the menace. We need coordinated efforts with ADACs to lick this problem.)
The team organized and chaired by the DILG with representatives from its line agencies — Philippine National Police (PNP), Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) — and other civil society organizations, will audit 81 provincial, 145 city and 1,489 municipal ADACs nationwide.
“Hindi lang ang DILG ang magsasagawa ng audit sa mga ADACs. Katuwang namin dito ang ibang ahensya ng gobyerno at mga CSOs para masiguro ang integridad ng proseso at ng resulta,” Año explained.
According to him, the ADACs will also be judged based on their two main functions — the establishment of community-based rehabilitation services and conduct of drug-clearing operations.
The department said that there would be five phases in auditing ADACs — Phase 1 tackles all about data gathering and verification, Phase 2 involves the review of the documents submitted by the ADAC provincial audit teams, while Phase 3 would be the finalization of all gathered scores and ratings of the ADAC National Audit Team.
The top ADACs would be presented on Phase 4, while the list of the best ADACs would be released to the media on Phase 5, on December 2018.
Año reminded LGUs to be one with President Rodrigo Duterte’s campaign, to finally rid the country of illegal drugs.
“Ang kampanya laban sa iligal na droga ay hindi lang laban ni Pangulong Duterte, ng DILG, PNP, DDB at PDEA. Ito ay laban nating lahat dahil salot ito sa ating lipunan. Kaya dapat nating siguruhin na kasama natin ang mga pamahalaang lokal sa kampanyang ito,” he said.
Before the 2016 Presidential elections, Duterte rode a campaign centered on eradicating streets of illegal drugs. Since his ascension to power, billions worth of illicit substances have been seized by authorities in various operations.
However, the President was also criticized for perpetrating an alleged inhumane war on drugs, as opposition groups claim that about 11,000 to 20,000 are dead due to both legitimate police operations and vigilante-style killings.
An independent academe study released in June 2018 puts the number at over 5,000 victims, while recent reports from the PNP and PDEA puts the number at 4,948./ac
READ: PDEA: Almost 5,000 killed in drug war