PNP, PDEA destroy over P1.2M worth of marijuana in Benguet

Around 6,300 marijuana plants worth over P1.2 million were destroyed by authorities in five separate plantations in Benguet on Thursday, the Philippine National Police (PNP) said.

In a statement, PNP chief Police General Guillermo Eleazar said the eradication of marijuana was conducted by local stations and units of the PNP and the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA).

The plantation sites were located at Sitio Dalipey, Barangay Tacadang in the town of Kibungan.

At the first site, around 1,200 marijuana plants worth P240,000 were uprooted and destroyed in 200 square meters of land. Meanwhile, around 1,500 marijuana plants worth P300,000 were uprooted and destroyed in 250 square meters of land at the second location.

At the third site, more or less 900 marijuana plants worth P180,000 were uprooted and destroyed in 150 square meters of land, and at the fourth site, around 300 marijuana plants worth P60,000 were uprooted and destroyed in 50 square meters of land.

Around 2,400 marijuana plants worth P480,000 were uprooted and destroyed in 400 square meters of land at the fifth site.

According to the PNP, no cultivator was apprehended during said operation. But, Eleazar assured that all perpetrators of marijuana planting will be held accountable.

"As part of Cleanliness in the Community aspect of our Internal Cleanliness Policy, our marijuana eradication operation nationwide will continue,” he said. —Joviland Rita/KBK, GMA News