MANILA, Philippines – The blame against Chinese nationals for the proliferation of illegal drugs in the Philippines is based on intelligence reports and cases faced by law enforcement, Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Oscar Albayalde said on Monday, October 15.

“‘Yung mga drugs [galing China ay] as per intelligence reports, sinasabi nga nila na galing China…So ‘yung bulk probably yung bulk pwede nating masabing marami tayong nakukuha doon,” Albayalde said in a press briefing in Camp Crame.

(The drugs coming from China are based on intelligence reports, they are saying they came from China… So the bulk, probably, the bulk we can say that we are getting a lot from there.)

He was asked by a reporter about President Rodrigo Duterte saying that there needs to be a “thorough investigation” first before Chinese could be blamed for illegal drugs.

The President’s statement runs against the repeated announcement of law enforcers, at least the PNP and lead anti-drug body the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency that most illegal drugs come from the Asian giant and its nationals coming into the Philippines.

Duterte ‘telling the truth’

Albayalde said, however, that he also understands where the President is coming from: that intelligence reports need to be validated first.

“Totoo ang sabi ng Presidente na (The President is telling the truth), that has to be validated, because what we have are intelligence reports. When you get intelligence information, it has to be validated. ‘Yun ang sabi ng Presidente (That’s what the President said),” Albayalde said.

The Duterte administration, however, is already marked by publishing intelligence information that has yet to be validated, most notably through its reporting of controversial drug lists on politicians, cops, and judges.

Albayalde also downplayed the involvement of Chinese by emphasizing that drugs also come from other foreign countries, and are even already being manufactured locally.

The top cop specified that the drugs that are not brought in by the Chinese are cocaine and ecstacy—narcotics relatively more expensive compared to the popular shabu (methamphetamine).

“Meron nang local (manufacturing of drugs), nakita mo ‘yung small time foreign[ers] small-time na niluluto sa mga subdivisions? Merong mga nare-recover sa apartments nga, pwede kang magluto. These were not Chinese nationals,” Albayalde said.

(There is already local manufacturing of drugs. Have you seen the small-time foreigners, small-time cooking inside subdivisions? There are even recovered drugs from apartments where you could cook. These are not Chinese nationals.) – Rappler.com