PDEA chief Aaron Aquino leads the drug tests among officials after the agency conducted a surprised drug examination at its Quezon City headquarters. Photo courtesy of PDEA Public Information Office
To prove that the agency is serious and capable in battling illegal drugs, officials of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) submitted themselves to a surprise drug test on Saturday.
During the agency’s second command conference in Quezon City, PDEA Director General Aaron Aquino as well as national staff and support service directors and regional directors submitted their urine samples for the mandatory drug test.
PDEA chief Aaron Aquino with the rest of the PDEA executives. Photo courtesy of PDEA Public Information Office
“This surprise drug test shows that PDEA, as the sole agency in battling the drug menace, is a drug-free workplace and a role model to other government agencies,” Aquino said.
“This will help establish our moral ascendancy and is part of the standard procedure in cleansing our ranks,” he added.
Despite being a small and compact agency, the PDEA was placed on the frontline by no less than President Rodrigo Duterte to implement the government’s war against illegal drugs, replacing the Philippine National Police.
PDEA officials also submit themselves to the drug test. Photo courtesy of PDEA Public Information Office
Duterte’s decision came amid serious accusations of widespread human rights violations in the bloody anti-drug campaign, which has killed thousands of suspected drug criminals across the country.
Aquino had vowed that there would be no human-rights abuses and extrajudicial killings in PDEA’s anti-narcotics operations and assured that the agency would strictly follow standard operating procedures. /jpv
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