SUCCESSFUL SUPPLY REDUCTION

LINGAYEN— If the trend continues, shabu will already hardly be afforded by the jobless and residents in settlements.

This became evident after Region 1 director of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) said price of shabu has increased by as much as 600 percent due to the intensified all-out war against illegal drugs.

“Before it was P1,000 per gram but now based on our monitoring, it reached P3,000 to P6,000 per gram of shabu,” PDEA Region 1 Director Jeoffrey Tacio said.

“Very big difference. As I said, our campaign against illegal drugs is gaining ground so let us help one another,” Tacio said.

He added that pushers are now hiding for fear of their lives.

He is very optimistic that illegal drugs would be eliminated if all stakeholders work together.

Tacio said they continue to focus on two areas identified as hotspots in Pangasinan, namely Barangay Bonuan Binloc in Dagupan City and Barangay Camantiles in Urdaneta City.

He said they are hoping within the timeline of six months, they would have been able to clear these places of illegal drugs.

“Efforts are being done to arrest the situation,” he said.

Tacio said he is not singling out anybody but the compounds looked into the two areas which have become a haven of illegal drugs are inhabited by Muslims. He said the Muslim residents in those have relocated to other areas while others went back to their places of origin in Mindanao.

He said pushers in these places also have contacts in Metro Manila and other sources.

Meanwhile, Tacio added that they have also formed a special task group to validate report about drug matrix on how drug trade is done at the New Bilibid Prison.

Among those named from Pangasinan were Fifth District Rep. Amado Espino Jr, Second District Board Member Raul Sison, former Justice Undersecretary Francisco Baraan III and his brother, former provincial administrator Rafael Baraan, Ronnie Dayan, the driver-bodyguard of then Justice Secretary Leila de Lima, now senator and a certain Jonathan Caranto.

“We are doing the best we can, no timeline but rest assured the investigation is not biased and if there would be people who would be hit, let them be hit and if there are those who would be cleared, they would be cleared,” Tacio added.

“It will definitely be a fair investigation,” he said. (Tita Roces)

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