LIGAN (Tara Yap)
ILOILO CITY – Police said Western Visayas is only a transshipment point for illegal drugs, following the confiscation of P74-million worth of shabu last February by units under Police Regional Office-6 (PRO-6).
PRO-6 chief Police Brig. Gen. Josefino Ligan said the geographic location of Western Visayas poses a big challenge as there are many entry points, especially Panay, a major island that is accessible by sea.
Ligan said that while drug traffickers are finding ways to transport, police are also discovering means to stop distribution by intensifying anti-illegal drug operations.
He said that drug supply in Western Visayas still comes from Metro Manila.
For nearly 10 years, no new drug lords have been identified in Western Visayas following the deaths of alleged drug lords Melvin “Boyet” Odicta and Richard Prevendido at the height of the drug war of the Duterte administration.
Ligan sternly warned drug peddlers that police in Aklan, Antique, Capiz, Guimaras, and Iloilo provinces as well as the capital of Iloilo City will continue to crack down on the illegal drugs trade. “If they want to continue, then in time, they will be arrested,” added Ligan.