Bacalzo: PNP not competing with PDEA

Manila, Philippines - Philippine National Police chief Director General Raul Bacalzo said yesterday the PNP does not intend to compete with the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency but is merely trying to strengthen PNP units that support PDEA.

PDEA officials earlier strongly opposed the PNP’s reported proposal to create its own anti-drug unit.

“I think there was just a misunderstanding on this particular issue, because the PDEA may have thought that we are replicating its job when we proposed the creation of our own anti-illegal drugs unit,” Bacalzo said.

“We know for a fact that there is a law stating that the PDEA is at the forefront of the campaign against illegal drugs and other agencies like the PNP will only serve as supporting units. That is the law and we cannot change that,” he added

Despite the opposition, Bacalzo said the PNP will always help and coordinate with the PDEA in the campaign against illegal drugs. “The PNP will always be a supporting unit of PDEA when it comes to illegal drugs operations. After all, we have the same objective – that is to stop rampant sale of illegal drugs,” he said.

He said the PNP proposed the creation of an Anti-Illegal Drugs Office (AIDO) to allow the PNP to get its own funding. With the additional budget, PNP personnel could also avail themselves of scholarship for career advancement, especially those assigned to the Anti-Illegal Drugs Special Operations Task Force (AIDSOTF).

The PNP chief said the idea came from a lawmaker who said AIDSOTF cannot get its own funding because it is only a special task force.