PDEA keeping eye on new party drug

Map of Cebu. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

CEBU CITY — The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency in Central Visayas (PDEA-7) is monitoring a new type of illegal drug which is three times stronger than shabu and ecstasy and served mostly in high-end bars.

PDEA-7 spokesperson Leia Albiar Alcantara said they were coordinating with their international counterparts to stop the possible entry of “Happy Water” into Central Visayas.

“We received reports that this new type of party drug has already entered Thailand and Myanmar. We are fortunate to get a lead this early to prevent its entry to the Philippines,” she said in an interview.

Alcantara said drinking Happy Water or cocktail drugs is harmful to humans because it causes hearts to beat faster, blood pressure to rise, affects the central nervous system, brings hallucinations, and damages the internal organs.

Happy Water, she said, is a combination of shabu, ecstasy, caffeine, diazepam, tramadol, and ketamine.

This kind of illegal drug is made of powder that can be mixed with drinks.

Alcantara said PDEA has yet to determine where Happy Water came from. PDEA, she said, was working with bar owners to stop the entry and proliferation of Happy Water.

She also called on parents to monitor their children to make sure they don’t fall prey to Happy Water.

“In times like this, parents have a big role to play. We would like to emphasize that this new kind of drug targets young people. Hence, we hope parents will monitor their children, who their companions are, and where they are going,” said Alcantara.

“We are not saying to restrict their children. What we want to convey is for parents to monitor their children because that is part of our responsibilities as parents,” she added.

In 2019, a 19-year-old woman was having fun with friends at a party on Jan. 19, the eve of the Grand Sinulog parade, when she suddenly collapsed.

She never regained consciousness.

Her family was told by authorities that she died from an overdose of ecstasy, a drug that induces a sense of euphoria but is deadly when taken with alcohol and in excess.

Meanwhile, the Central Visayas police arrested 28 “high-value drug personalities” and seized 4.6 kilos of shabu and 1.7 kilos of marijuana worth P31.2 million in separate operations in the region from April 23 to 29.

Brigadier General Anthony Aberin, director of PRO-7, said the drug haul was a product of the policemen’s efforts to address the drug problem in Central Visayas.

“We are conducting intelligence-driven anti-drug operations calculated to redound to the reduction of crimes in the region,” he said.

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