By Raymund Antonio
While it is unlikely for her to join actual anti-drug operations, Vice President Leni Robredo will not be left out in the law enforcement aspect of the government’s anti-illegal drugs campaign, after all.
Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Eduardo Año and Vice President Leni Robredo (OVP / MANILA BULLETIN)
Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Eduardo Año said Robredo can help "refine" the campaign plans of law enforcement agencies under the Inter-Agency Committee on the Anti-Illegal Drugs (ICAD).
Robredo, as co-chair of ICAD with (PDEA) Director-General Aaron Aquino, met with Año and other DILG officials on Tuesday, to be briefed on the participation of local government units and their strategies in the anti-narcotics campaign.
"Iyong paggawa ng operational plans, pwede siya magsit down doon at makita niya 'yung provisions pati policy formations," he told reporters after the meeting.
(In making the operational plans, she can sit down there and see the provisions as well as the policy formations.)
"After reviewing iyong tinatawag nating evaluation every quarter, pwede umupo ang Vice President doon and pwede ibigay ang kanyang observation kasi may link siya sa public," Año said.
(After reviewing what we call evaluation every quarter, the Vice President can sit down there and she can give her observation because she has link to the public.)
The DILG secretary reiterated that Robredo should leave the actual anti-illegal drug operations to law enforcers.
During their meeting, Robredo emphasized the importance of the roles of the DILG and Philippine National Police (PNP) in both drug supply and demand reduction.
The lady official pointed out the need for capacity-building and funding of LGUs, particularly Anti-Drug Abuse Councils (ADACs), to perform their responsibilities with regard to community-based drug rehabilitation.
More than a week into her job, the new drug czar has been meeting the ICAD agencies as well as local and foreign organizations, as part of her efforts to reform the campaign against illegal drugs.
On Monday, the ICAD co-chair had discussions with health officials on the status of the rehabilitation of drug dependents in the country.
"Ang unang magandang development na nakita namin dito is the appreciation of the Vice President sa requirements ng ibat ibang ahensya na mapalakas iyong kampanya, especially iyong budget," Año said.
(The first positive development we have seen here is the appreciation of the Vice President on the requirements of the different agencies to strengthen the campaign, especially the budget.)
The DILG secretary sees no problem that Robredo was not appointed to a Cabinet position when President Rodrigo Duterte made her his administration's drug czar.
"She won't be affected because ICAD is an inter-agency committee, the job of the ICAD co-chair is to ensure all of the efforts of the different agencies are harmonized," he said.