PNP says it hasn’t seen Marcos name in drugs watchlist

Facade of the PNP headquarters in Camp Crame. Image from pnp.gov.ph website

MANILA, Philippines — Following the controversial allegations of former chief executive Rodrigo Duterte against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., the Philippine National Police (PNP) said on Monday that it had not seen any drug watchlist that bears the name of the country’s top official.

PNP spokesperson Col. Jean Fajardo clarified this when asked if they know something about Duterte’s allegations.

“It’s best to ask na lang ang Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) because that was their statement, but on the part of the PNP, we have not seen any document or list reflecting the name of our president,” Fajardo said in a press briefing.

During his speech at a prayer rally in Davao City on Sunday night, Duterte expressed his strong opposition against the people’s initiative to amend the Constitution as he accused Marcos of being a “drug addict.”

“Nung ako ay mayor pinakitaan ako ng evidence ng PDEA (Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency) doon sa listahan nandoon yung pangalan mo ayaw ko sabihin yan kasi magkaibigan tayo, kungdi magkaibigan, magkakilala. Pumapasok kayo ng alanganin Mr. President baka susunod ka sa dinaan ng tatay mo, dyan ako takot ayaw ko mangyari sayo yan,” Duterte added.

(PDEA showed me evidence back when I was a mayor. You are on their list, but I didn’t say anything because we are friends, if not acquaintances. But this is a wrong move on your part, Mr. President; I am afraid you will follow in your father’s footsteps. I don’t want that to happen to you.)

Duterte also said that the military and law enforcement agencies know about this issue. He added that he is afraid that the president will follow in his father’s footsteps, referring to the ouster of the late Marcos Sr. in 1986.

In response, the PDEA said in a statement that Marcos was never on the government watch list for illegal drugs. The agency likewise pointed out that Duterte had his own narco-list when he became president in 2016.

On the other hand, Marcos laughed off the former president’s allegations, saying that he “won’t even dignify the question.”