Lawmaker: One-fourth of public officials funded by drug barons

About one-fourth of the country’s elected officials have in one way or another profited from drug lords, the chairman of the House committee on dangerous drugs said yesterday.

Cebu City Rep. Antonio Cuenco, who will lead the drug summit today at the House of Representatives, said he is only making an estimate as statistics or hard evidence that would stand in court is almost impossible to acquire.

"Narco-politics is actually common knowledge," Cuenco said in a telephone interview. "The people, the constituents know who these politicians are who receive drug money, protect drug syndicates or even engage in drug trafficking."

"My appeal is for the people not to vote for those whom they know are coddlers," Cuenco said.

He added that drug money amounting to billions of pesos will most likely flow in greater volume in the coming local and national elections as drug traffickers are known to contribute to the campaign funds of all political sides to secure their business.

"Drug lords have so many friends because they have so much money," he stressed.

Cuenco disclosed that the government’s anti-drug agencies and the congressional oversight committee, which he co-chairs with Sen. Robert Barbers, often receive reports of elected and appointed officials who have links to drug syndicates in varying degrees but the information is not enough to be used as evidence.

He said only with all-out and active cooperation of the public can the fight against drugs succeed.

Cuenco said today’s drug summit aims to come up with better policies to improve coordination among agencies and enforcement of laws.

He explained that based on studies, law enforcement agencies are achieving a measly one percent conviction rate for drug cases. The problem, he said, lies with the sloppy handling of cases by lawmen, prosecutors and even some judges.

Most of the time the arrests are declared illegal, the warrants are out of form, the evidence, such as the drug haul, are either mishandled or missing, and most of the time the policemen or agents do not appear in court hearings.

Expected to attend the summit are Executive Secretary Alberto Romulo, Justice Secretary Simeon Datumanong, Philippine National Police Director General Hermogenes Ebdane Jr., PNP Deputy Director General Edgardo Aglipay, National Bureau of Investigation chief Reynaldo Wycoco, Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) chief Anselmo Avenido, Chief State Prosecutor Jovencito Zuño, Intelligence Service of the Armed Forces chief Col. Victor Corpus, Presidential Adviser on Drugs Alfredo Lim and other heads of key government agencies.

President Arroyo and Cuenco are also scheduled to meet today to discuss the solon’s request for Malacañang to certify as urgent House Bill 6017, which seeks a P1 billion budget for the PDEA.

This is on top of the P1 billion committed by the President to fund the three-month anti-drug campaign that includes neutralizing drug syndicates and dismantling marijuana plantations.

The present PDEA budget is only P143 million.

Meanwhile, the Department of Health (DOH) will soon require overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) to undergo drug testing in accredited government centers only.

"We want to ensure the quality of the drug testing clinics that examine them," Dr. Benjamin Reyes, supervising promotion officer of the DOH’s National Health Promotion, said.

Reyes clarified that the Philippine government does not require OFWs to take drug tests but sometimes it is a requirement of their host countries or employers.

At present there are 1,053 private laboratories conducting drug tests nationwide but in a DOH inspection conducted from January to March this year, 90 percent failed to pass DOH’s compliance standards.

Reyes said these clinics will be given a grace period in which to comply with prescribed government standards. "We assure the public of quality drug testing," he said.