PCOO promotes PH gov’t
gains in anti-drug campaign
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Presidential
Communications Secretary Martin Andanar (left) hands over a copy of “Gramo” to
Philippine Ambassador to the Netherlands, Jaime Victor Ledda, at the Philippine
Embassy in The Hague, Netherlands on February 20. (PCOO photo)
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THE HAGUE,
Netherlands – The Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO)
championed the accomplishments of President Rodrigo R. Duterte’s fight against
illegal drugs in The Hague.
“The
Duterte administration has constantly been undertaking numerous initiatives and
programs to achieve its goal of drug-free and drug-resistant communities,” PCOO
Secretary Andanar said during an engagement with the Filipino community here at
the Philippine Embassy in the Netherlands on Feb. 20.
Citing
data from the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency, Andanar said the government
has already seized P41.55-billion worth of illegal drugs; rescued 2,833
children from illegal drug-related activities; arrested 735 drug abusers who
are government workers; dismantled 506 drug dens and laboratories; and cleared
17,816 barangays as of December 2019.
“These
are triumphant achievements for both the government and the civil society, all
thanks to President Rodrigo Roa Duterte’s strong political will, geared towards
providing a comfortable and dignified life for all Filipinos,” he said, adding
that the PCOO will remain persistent in presenting the real stories of the drug
war despite pressure from domestic and foreign critics.
He
lamented that despite these achievements, criticisms continue to be lobbed at
the government’s fight against illegal drugs, especially from the opposition
who refuse to look at the results thus far.
These
are amplified, he added, through the proliferation of disinformation and fact
twisting by naysayers whose agenda is to discredit the government.
“Despite
these obstacles, the Duterte administration will remain firm in its mandate and
obligation to realize a drug-free and corruption-free Philippines,” he said.
Andanar
also turned over a copy of the PCOO-produced anti-illegal drug documentary film
“Gramo” to the Philippine Embassy in The Hague, followed by a film-showing
session attended by the members of the Filipino community, students, and Dutch
officials.
“Thank
you very much for these materials which we will be sharing with the Netherlands
government, that we also now have the information from the Philippine
government, particularly on the anti-illegal drug campaign,” Ledda said.
A
copy of the Presidental Task Force on Media Security (PTFoMS) report on the
state of media freedom in the Philippines was also given to the Philippine
Embassy.
“This
is very important. The Netherlands is an advocate for fundamental human rights,
and one of the things we emphasize is the importance of press freedom, and I
think it’s very important for us to show that press freedom is very much alive
in the Philippines, and also the administration of justice is very much
functioning, independent, and impartial. I think these are very important
messages that we can convey to our partners here in Europe,” Ledda said.
Bianca
Ruiz, a student from the Leiden University in the Netherlands, said, “The
documentary was very informative. I do believe that drugs are a huge problem in
the Philippines, and I understand it as a domestic policy of Duterte, and I
believe in it. And I also appreciate that he’s also capitalizing also the
rehabilitation centers.”
Meanwhile,
columnist and former city councilor of The Hague, Anton Lutter, said he
supports the programs of President Rodrigo Roa Duterte.
“I’m
very supportive of the President, and because he’s a president who takes
action, he takes care of his people. He is trying to breakdown the drug crimes,
of course, this is something you can’t manage in four years, but basically he
is the President who is actually doing something about it,” he said.
He
said that is also what he hears from a lot of the Philippine diaspora who are
very supportive of the President.
“But
of course you won’t hear that in the western media. So that is always something
to realize that it’s not only negative news about the Philippines,” he added.
Human
rights in the Philippines, he added, is basically on a good level.
“You
cannot say there is a dictatorship. There’s democracy, there’s a good sound
judiciary stem, with an independent Supreme Court,” he said. (PCOO)
