"Injecting politics in the campaign would only derail the effort to stop the activities of drug lords, their protectors, runners, and street-level pushers," he said.
He said Mrs. Arroyo should not commit the mistake she made two years ago when she "unleashed" Armed Forces intelligence chief Col. Victor Corpus to investigate his supposed drug connections.
She said the President just wasted precious taxpayers’ money, effort and time that could have been used to neutralize the real drug lords.
Corpus had charged Lacson with alleged involvement in the illegal drug trade and with amassing about $700 million abroad in proceeds from his supposed illegal activities.
His two witnesses were Angelo "Ador" Mawanay and Mary Ong, alias Rosebud. Recently, however, Mawanay recanted his story against Lacson and claimed that he was forced to say the things he said about the opposition senator.
Ong continues to be under the protective custody of Corpus, while Mawanay has given up such protection.
The serious charges Corpus and his witnesses leveled against Lacson made headlines but did not stick. The accusers have not brought an indictment against their quarry.
Lacson said Mrs. Arroyo should now focus her effort on drug dealers who he added are known to the military and the police.
He expressed support for the strengthening of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency and for the President’s decision to allot P1 billion for the anti-drug campaign.
He recalled that when he was chief of the Philippine National Police, the PNP spent as much as P2.5 million a month in going after drug lords and street-level peddlers.