PDEA supports passage of amendment to law vs wiretapping

The country’s antidrug law enforcement agency has expressed its support for the passage of a proposed bill amending the law penalizing wiretapping in the country.

Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) Director General Undersecretary Arturo Cacdac Jr. said the bill amending Republic Act No. 4200, known as Act to Prohibit and Penalize Wire Tapping and Other Related Violations of the Privacy of Communication, and for Other Purposes, was a welcome development and demonstration of the House of Representatives’ support to the agency and antidrug enforcement community as a whole.

“The proposed bill would address the need for additional investigative and judicial tools that grant authority to intercept criminal communications, particularly concerning illegal drug activities perpetrated by big-time syndicates,” Cacdac said in a statement on Friday.

House Bill No. 5839, authored by Iligan City Rep. Vicente Belmonte Jr., is an act authorizing wiretapping in cases involving violations of Republic Act No. 9165 or The Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.

According to Cacdac, the enactment of the bill will empower PDEA and other drug law enforcement agencies to reach the command and control structure of drug-trafficking organizations and bring them to justice.

The latest International Narcotics Control Strategy Report (INCSR) revealed that the lack of legislative efforts authorizing wiretapping for drug-related cases and the shortfall of reforms in the criminal justice system continue to hamper the country’s efforts to stop international drug-trafficking syndicates from using the Philippines as a market and transshipment point for dangerous drugs.