MPD watching 16 ‘public servants’ for ‘entrapment, arrest or neutralization’

Sixteen local and national government officials—including police officers—are now being monitored and may soon be targeted for “entrapment, arrest or neutralization” by the Manila Police District (MPD) for suspected involvement in illegal drug activities.

In a statement on Tuesday, Supt. Joel Coronel, the MPD director, said the 16 “public servants” were assigned in the Manila City Hall as well as barangay and national government offices located in the city.

Coronel withheld their names and just described those on the list as elected or appointed officials. “Some are drug users, coddlers, traffickers, or protectors, including from the PNP.”

The list, he said, included “high-value targets” identified by arrested drug suspects or those who had surrendered to the MPD under the “Oplan Tokhang” campaign. Over the past two weeks alone, 38 suspects have been arrested while about 200 have surrendered.

The information provided by the suspects and surrenderers were “backed up” by records from the MPD’s Anti-Illegal Drugs Division and Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency, the police official added. “We have been monitoring (them). Once we are done with the validation and it proved positive, we will conduct an operation—either entrapment, arrest or neutralization.”

Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada ordered the MPD to “hasten the operation” against the targets so it could serve as a warning to “unscrupulous city officials who are into drugs.”

“We will support you all the way and provide whatever you need so long as these targets are put behind bars,” he added. —Kristine Felisse Mangunay