The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) has sworn in 94 newly-recruited agents, which it said, would be a boost to the country's aggressive campaign against illegal drugs.
PDEA spokesperson Derrick Arnold Carreon said the 94 new agents are part of the Drug Enforcement Officers Basic Course (DEOBC) Class 2021-19. They took their oath on Monday, March 8, at the PDEA Academy in Silang Cavite.
Carreon said the new agents are composed of 63 males and 31 females who passed the selection process of 1,074 examinees across the country last year.
In his address during the reception ceremony for the new agents, PDEA Director General Wilkins M. Villanueva said the selection process of the new batch is the first under his watch, and considered distinct due to the pandemic.
After the March 1 examinations, the Medical and Dental Examination, Physical Fitness Test (PFT) and Panel Interview of the applicants were put on hold for several months because of the lockdown, and resumed in the latter part of 2020 to February this year, thus, making it distinct because they were conducted simultaneously in PDEA regional offices nationwide.
The new batch of agent-trainees will first undergo a 14-day mandatory quarantine before their final six-month rigorous training.
Villanueva assured that the members of the class will be molded into principled, professional, accountable and excellence-driven individuals after their training to boost the government’s campaign against illegal drugs.