Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 11) — Members of the Philippine National Police Drug Enforcement Group (PDEG) will go through lifestyle checks as the unit grapples with the pilferage of seized drugs in a major operation in Manila last year, an official said on Thursday.
The profiling and lifestyle checks will be conducted every six months, PDEG Director PBGen. Antonio Olaguera, adding that there is no violation of the officers’ right to privacy.
“Public office is a public trust. For as long as you are a public officer, you are bound by that,” he said.
The pilferage involved 42 kilograms of shabu, the local version of methamphetamine hydrochloride, during a massive drug haul in the district of Tondo.
On the proposal to abolish PDEG special operations units, Olaguera said every future operation would have to be approved by the national headquarters if it pushes through.
“I submit na wala namang special na epekto. As a matter [of fact] mas maganda magiging ganun kasi centralized na, closely monitored and everything will be case operational plan (COPLAN)-based,” Olaguera explained.
[Translation: I submit that there won’t be a special effect. As a matter of fact, it’s better that way as it will be centralized, closely monitored, and everything will be case operational plan-based.]
The PDEG director added that the police force had no problems in terms of manpower to handle drug operations across regional, provincial, and municipal offices.
“COPLAN-based yung gagawin natin and as far as the regional office is concerned meron naman tayong Regional Drug Enforcement Units [RDEUs]. As far as provincial police offices meron tayong Provincial Drug Enforcement Units [PDEUs] and then yung stations naman Municipal Drug Enforcement Units [MDEUs],” he said.
[Translation: What we’re doing is COPLAN based and as far as the regional, provincial, and municipal offices are concerned, we have RDEUs, PDEUs, and MDEUs.]
