AN official of the Philippine National Police (PNP) has revealed an intelligence report that some local officials have been identified to be ramping up illegal drug activities in their areas to further increase their war chest in the elections next year.
Brig. Gen. Eleazar Matta, chief of the PNP Drug Enforcement Group, said they are validating the information and conducting intelligence operations against local government executives involved in the distribution or proliferation of illegal drugs in the country.
Matta talked about an informant who has positively identified a mayor who’s on their watch list of big-time drug distributors. This official reportedly procures about three kilos of shabu every two weeks for retail distribution in areas that he controls.
‘It is sure as hell that drug money will play an important part in the coming midterm elections, along with huge, dirty profits from POGO…’
Before the problem gets out of hand, the whole PNP has been mobilized to control the resurgence of illegal drugs in the country, both in urban and rural areas.
This is reminiscent of the early years of the Duterte administration during which former President Rodrigo Duterte mobilized all the government’s security forces to stop drug trafficking and drug addiction. Duterte even had a list of mayors, other local officials, and top police officials, including generals and colonels, for stern neutralization.
Matta said they also have a drug list, but this is different from that of Duterte’s.
Of course, it is different, mainly because we have a new tenant in Malacañang, a new political circle in power, which extends to the police, Customs, Department of Justice, the courts, PDEA, etc.
The drug trade is not run by the ordinary lowlife, the drug pushers in some back alleys, but by rich syndicate members who buy support from top government authorities.
It is sure as hell that drug money will play an important part in the coming midterm elections, along with huge, dirty profits from POGO, jueteng, and who knows — even kidnapping for ransom and armed robberies. Candidates and their campaigns will not ask donors if the money they are giving came from legal or illegal sources.
The police will be kept very busy from now until the filing of candidacies in October, the campaign period and during the elections in May. They had better be on their toes and keep their independent stance, although we know this is hard for the PNP, as past elections have shown.
