THE Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) on Tuesday (May 20), destroyed some P5.32 billion worth of dangerous drugs at a government owned incinerator in Barangay Aguado, Trece Martires City in Cavite, witnessed by Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez and Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB) chairman Oscar Valenzuela.
Other PDEA, along with representatives from the Philippine National Police and other law enforcement agencies, the Department of Justice, the Department of the Interior and Local Government, local government units, non-government organizations, and the media were also present.
A total of 2.2 million kilograms of solid illegal drugs, and 3,447.0920 milliters of liquid illegal drugs went up in smoke during the destruction held at the Integrated Waste Management, Inc. facility.
Among the illegal drugs that were burned were over 738 kilos of shabu; 1,478 kilos of marijuana: 4.8 kilos of Ecstasy pills, .2168 grams of cocaine and some other prohibited drugs.
“These are pieces of drug evidence confiscated during anti-drug operations by PDEA and other counterpart law enforcement agencies, including those turned over by authorities that were recently ordered by the court to be destroyed. Stacked inside a chamber, the dangerous drugs were burned beyond recovery”, said PDEA chief Isagani Nerez.
This is the first drug destruction conducted under Nerez watch at the PDEA that started three months ago.
Among the dangerous drugs destroyed were the 404.951 5 kilograms of shabu that were seized by combined operatives of PDEA, National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and the Bureau of Customs (BOC) during an interdiction operation at the Port of Manila last January 23.
Nerez commended the efforts of the different branches of the Regional Trial Courts for the expeditious prosecution and disposition of drug cases which paved the way for the expeditious destruction of these illegal drugs
Nerez noted that the destruction process should have dispelled any public misgivings that seized drug were being recycled.
“PDEA promotes transparency and its actions are open to the people as advocated under the “Bagong Pilipinas” program led by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. The public deserves nothing less than our utmost diligence and integrity,” he said.