Malacañang’s yearend report: We have accomplished much in first year

President Rodrigo Duterte INQUIRER.net FILE PHOTO

More than two years after President Rodrigo Duterte assumed the presidency, Malacañang has assured Filipinos that the government is committed to eliminate illegal drugs, criminality, and corruption in government through the “crucial reforms” instituted by the administration

In a 63-page yearend report released on Tuesday, Malacanang said that President Duterte and his administration would “act in urgency” to give “the Filipino people a safe, secure, and comfortable environment through his key platforms of providing law and order, lasting peace, and prosperity for all.”

War on Drugs

In its controversial war against illegal drugs, Malacañang said that combined data from the Philippine National Police (PNP), Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA), National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), and the Bureau of Customs (BOC), showed that 1,308,078 drug addicts have surrendered to the government as of July 26, 2017; while authorities have arrested 118,287 individuals as of November 27, 2017 during 79,193 anti-drug operations in the same period.

It also said that authorities have seized illegal substances worth P18.92 billion; and that 4,747 barangays have been declared drug-free as of November 27, 2017.

At least 3,967 drug personalities have died in the government’s war on drugs as of November 27, 2017 while 16, 355 homicide cases are still under investigation, the joint data added.

From January to September 2017, data from the Department of Health revealed that 16,103 drug dependents were undergoing rehabilitation program while 2,236 individuals have completed the agency’s drug rehabilitation program.

Meanwhile, a total of 14,406 drug surrenderers have received livelihood and skills training from the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda) as of September 2017.

A report from the Inter-Agency Committee on Anti-Illegal Drug said that 93 percent of barangays nationwide have already organized their Barangay Anti-Drug Abuse Council (Badac).

Fight vs criminality

The PNP said there was a decrease of 8.44 percent in the total crime volume nationwide from 493,912 reported crimes in October 2016 to 452,204 in October 2017.

It also noted the decrease in index crime at 20.56 percent.

The police added that there was also a decrease in robbery incidents by 23.61 percent from 18,259 in October 2016 to 13,948 in October 2017.

Despite President Duterte’s unforgiving war on drugs, Malacañang said that the PNP continues its internal cleansing to rid the institution of abusive police.

Citing data from the PNP, Malacañang said a total of 426 policemen have been recommended for dismissal – 51 from July 2016 to December 2016, and 375 from January 2017 to December 2017.

It also said that the two policemen involved in the death of 19-year old Carl Arnaiz were already dismissed in November 2017.

Two police generals – Chief Supt. Edgardo Tinio and Chief Supt. Joel Pagdilao – were also dismissed from service on October 5, 2017 due to drug-related charges.

According to the Palace, the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) has relieved 1,000 policemen of the Caloocan City Police Station in batches. They consequently underwent retraining and reorientation at Camp Bagong Diwa in Taguig City

It added that more than 1,900 drug-related investigations have been carried out against law enforcers from July 1, 2016 to June 15, 2017.

Fighting corruption

The administration launched the Freedom of Information (FOI) program in the executive branch on November 25, 2016 along with its online portal, eFOI.

The FOI platform now has 217 participating agencies.

According to the government, it has already received 2,635 requests for information from the public.

Also, the government launched its Citizens’ Complaint Hotline 8888 during the first few months of the Duterte administration.

Malacañang said 87 percent of the complaints had been resolved while 27,000 of the 31,000 complaints have been referred to the concerned agencies as of June 30, 2017.

In the yearend report, Malacañang urged Filipinos to “help the current administration lay down the foundation of a peaceful and prosperous Philippines that we all deserve.”

“The Duterte administration has accomplished much in its first year in office in 2017.  The President’s decisive leadership, plus the strong collaboration among various government agencies, has resulted in the attainment of many of the priorities set out by the national government in the last twelve months,” the report stated.                        /kga