Senate President Vicente Sotto III is pushing for the creation of a new agency that will leave drug busts in the hands of the Philippine National Police. The aim is to prevent misencounters between the police and anti-narcotics agents of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA).
Sotto said that the new Presidential Drug Enforcement Authority will only supervise and leave the Philippine National Police in charge of drug bust operations to avoid misencounters.
“Under nila ang PNP pagdating sa enforcement at di kailangan na sila mismo ang nagba-buy bust,” said Sotto.
This move to dissolve the current agency was opposed by PDEA.
According to Sotto, PDEA has become too “centralized” in its enforcement duties that it has forgotten its other mandates.
“Ang pagsagupa sa illegal drugs at drug abuse, di puwedeng puro enforcement. Sapagkat habang may drug dependent, may magbebenta,” he said.
The misencounter between PNP and PDEA agents in February, which left 4 dead, is currently being tackled and investigated by the Senate public order and dangerous drug committee.
A near misencounter between the two law enforcement agencies occurred at a mall in Fairview, Quezon City on May 14.
