MACAPAGAL TRAINS SIGHTS ON FOREIGN DRUG PUSHERS

COMING out of successive victories against local drug manufacturers and
traffickers, President Macapagal-Arroyo now vows to stop foreign drug lords
from further setting a foothold in the country.

In a statement, Ms Macapagal said, "Foreign drug lords will be given no
quarter in the Philippines."

"We have dismantled our 18th drug laboratory and more will fall as we sweep
the barangay of pushers," said the President.

Ms Macapagal said her anti-narcotics campaign had led to a shortage in
illegal drugs as indicated by the tripling in the street price of illegal
drugs.

"We will push it higher by curtailing the supply," she vowed.

The President noted that the anti-drug campaign had resulted in a sharp
drop in the number of drug-related crimes.

This developed as Valenzuela City signed a memorandum of agreement with the
Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) for an enhanced anti-drug drive
in the city.

City police chief Jose Marcelo told the Inquirer that while the illegal
drug trade in the city had been reduced, continued drug use in remote areas
were still rife.

His disclosure was reinforced by an informal survey by the Pamantasan ng
Lungsod ng Valenzuela in December that showed residents identifying drug
addiction as a key problem in the city.

The survey, which questioned 2,000 residents, was conducted by students and
teachers of the National Service Training Program of the college.