MANILA — A substantial amount of illegal drugs hauled, seized, and confiscated by the Philippine National Police and the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency are allegedly being recycled for sale back on the streets in the past 20 years and some portion of which are given out to informants as rewards.
This fact was revealed recently by an asset-informant of the two government enforcement agencies who admitted being given “basura,” street lingo for shabu, by anti-illegal drug operatives of the two agencies every time they make a successful buy-bust hit based on his tips.
The amount varies from 30 percent to 70% of the drug haul the asset-informant told lawmakers during the hearing called by Surigao del Norte Representative and Chairman of the House Committee on Dangerous Drugs Ace Barbers who condemned the said illegal practice even as he promised to unearth more evidence and name names in succeeding hearings.
“The testimony of the asset confirmed what we have heard all this time. The illegal practice of giving substantial portions of the drugs seized now has a face. In due time, if the evidence warrants, criminal charges will be filed,” Barbers said.
“We will not stop until we have unmasked all these crooks in uniform who have doomed so many lives to live in luxury”, Barbers added.
(Ismael Amigo/MTVN)
