Benguet cops seize P60-M marijuana

BENGUET, Philippines – At least P60 million worth of marijuana in five hectares of land in Kibungan and Bakun towns went up in smoke after policemen raided the plantations over the weekend.

Chief Superintendent Benjamin Magalong, Cordillera regional police director, said that the marijuana plants were seized from 48 plantations within a five-hectare area in the two towns.

Magalong said that they torched 260,500 fully grown marijuana plants, 27,800 seedlings, 28 kilos of marijuana stalks and 11 kilos of seeds from the plantations.

The three-day raid conducted from February 16-18 was dubbed “Berdeng Ginto” (Green Gold).

Despite the raids, policemen failed to arrest the people maintaining the plantations.

Magalong vowed a “more forceful, intensive and unrelenting campaign against the cultivation and use of illegal drugs region wide.”

Aside from more extensive operations against marijuana plantations, the authorities are actively educating local communities on the ill-effects of the illegal drugs.