Let Robredo succeed

By Egay Uy

REACTION were mixed when President Duterte “offered” to make Vice President Leni Robredo as the anti-drug “czar” of the country. The offer was seen as a possible reaction to the latter’s pronouncement that the government’s anti-drug campaign had failed. 

There were reactions like Robredo “is doomed to fail because the administration will see to it that she does,” “it’s a trap, if it did not fail why relinquish it to somebody else,” “the vice president has to experience to lead such a gargantuan task,” and many more either logical or merely off-the-shoulder remarks that do not even have to be given attention.

Surprise, surprise. Not long after her designation as co-chair of the inter-agency committee on anti-illegal drugs, vice president Robredo accepted the challenge and was reported to have called the  Inter-Agency Committee on Anti-Illegal Drugs (Icad) to a meeting. As of this writing, I have not yet read reports of what transpired in that meeting.

Based on Executive Order No. 15, the Icad is mandated to ensure the effective conduct of anti-illegal drugs operations and arrest of drug personalities, including street-level drug pushers and users, lead and coordinate the implementation of the government’s national anti-drug plan of action, ensure the implementation of the administration’s barangay drug-clearing program, remove government personnel involved in illegal drugs from office, and several related tasks.

The inter-agency committee also has four clusters. One such cluster is the enforcement cluster which is responsible for conducting anti-illegal drug operations with the support of other law enforcement agencies through the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) and the national anti-drug task force. I surmise this is the cluster that kills the “nanlaban” suspects.

Another cluster is the justice cluster which is responsible for the prosecution of all drug cases, provision of legal assistance to law enforcers and ensuring availability of public attorneys for protection on individuals’ rights. I still have to see bigger fry being prosecuted by this cluster.

A third cluster is the advocacy cluster. It is assigned to conduct nationwide advocacy campaign for the government’s anti-illegal drug policy and all anti-narcotics related programs, and then there is the rehabilitation and reintegration cluster which implements drug rehabilitation programs and ensure reintegration of former drug dependents and personalities to society.

With these clusters and functions, the new co-chairperson of the Icad will always have a way of getting into the nitty-gritty of the anti-drug operations on her way to succeeding. 

As 16 million or more patiently waited for more than three years for the anti-illegal drug to succeed, it is also but fair to give the vice president until June 30, 2022, for her to make a positive mark in the country’s anti-illegal drug campaign. After all, this is our country.