Duterte administration’s war on drugs remains ‘unprecedented’ —Palace

Malacañang on Thursday said the Duterte administration’s war on drugs campaign has remained “unprecedented and produced significant accomplishments,” noting that more than P63 billion worth of shabu was seized during his term.

In a statement, acting presidential spokesperson Martin Andanar said a total value of P63.43 billion or 9,915 kilograms of shabu were seized, while 1,075 dens and clandestine laboratories were dismantled from July 2016 to February 2022.

Andanar said at least 24,379 barangays were cleared, while 6,606 were unaffected or drug-free barangays.

On Wednesday, Duterte admitted that he was wrong to claim he could end the country’s drugs problem within three to six months of taking office—a promise he made as a presidential candidate in 2016.

“Duterte’s recent remarks on the illegal drug trade underscores the depth, the magnitude and the complexity of the problem which was unknown to him when he was a presidential candidate,” Andanar said.

“The Palace, thus, maintains that the Duterte Administration’s campaign against illegal drugs remains unprecedented as it is able to produce significant accomplishments in the number of drugs seized, dens and clandestine laboratories dismantled as well as drug-cleared barangays,” he added.

The Duterte administration has been marked by the deaths of thousands of mainly poor Filipinos in his war on drugs, for which he said he will never apologize.

The International Criminal Court in November last year suspended its investigation into Duterte's bloody anti-drugs campaign after the Philippines asked the tribunal to defer its probe, saying that the national government is investigating the deaths. — BM, GMA News