Badian police uproot marijuana worth P450T

CEBU, Philippines - About 2,500 fully grown marijuana plants worth P450,000 were uprooted by the Badian police in a seven-hour operation Thursday morning in the mountain area of Sitio Tap-ong, Barangay Basiao, Badian.

Information of the marijuana plantation stemmed from a police asset and from barangay officials that prompted the police to conduct the operation led by Insp. Reyco Romaguera, Badian police chief.

Police failed to arrest the persons involved in maintaining the plantation. The operation started at around 3:00 a.m. and ended at 10:30 a.m.

Romaguera said they found a shanty a few meters away from the plantation but nobody was around.  Marijuana plants were reportedly planted in a timberland and secluded area on top of a mountain.

“Ang lisod kay ang terrain sa lugar suoton kaayo. (It was very hard because the rough terrain made the area almost inaccessible),” Romaguera said in a phone interview.

He added that some marijuana plants were destroyed in the area while others were taken to the police station for safekeeping.

In December last year, Badian police also uprooted 2,000 fully grown marijuana plants amounting to P400,000 when sold in the same barangay. Still, none was arrested.

In October last year, the Provincial Public Safety Company also uprooted about 3,000 fully grown marijuana plants worth P600,000 in the mountain barangays of Gaas and Manunggal, Balamban.

The operation was considered as one of the major accomplishments of the Cebu Provincial Police Office because they were able to save thousands of lives. No one was arrested though.

Sr. Supt. Patrocinio Comendador, director of the CPPO, said that marijuana plants are hard to eradicate as long as its market exists.  (FREEMAN)