By Aaron Recuenco The number of the cocaine bricks being recovered in Mindanao and southern part of Luzon since last week is too big and pricey to become a mere diversionary tactic for the smuggling of illegal drugs in the country. Philippine National Police Chief Director Oscar Albayalde (Kevin Tristan Espiritu / MANILA BULLETIN) This was the reason why the Philippine National Police (PNP) believes that the series of discovery of cocaine was unintentional, and probably was a result of an accident on one of the cocaine hauls that was dumped in the open seas near or within the Philippine territory, and intended to be picked up by smaller ships for transport and distribution to other countries. PNP chief Director General Oscar Albayalde said that, based on their analysis, the cocaine bricks may have been floating for months in the open seas and only reached the Philippine shorelines recently. “It is possible that over the months or years na itong nagpo-float at nagkahiwa-hiwalay. It is possible,” said Albayalde. Earlier, a top official of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) said the discovery of the cocaine bricks in Dinagat Island Surigao del Norte, Quezon, Camarines Sur and Camarines Norte could be a diversionary tactic for a bigger drug haul that would enter the Philippines. But Albayalde said that cocaine was not being patronized that much in the Philippines because it was more expensive compared to shabu, which is at the top of the consumption chain in the country. “I don't see any diversionary tactics as of this time not unless it is diversionary and it's intended for other countries,” said Albayalde. “It is possible that this could be diversionary pero napakalaking halaga ito para gawin diversionary tactics,” he added. More than 90 cocaine bricks have so far been recovered in Mindanao and southern part of Luzon since last week, all of them were tipped by fishermen and local residents who would come across with the bricks either floating on the sea on in the shoreline. Albayalde said the PNP Maritime Group has already intensified the conduct of monitoring and patrol on the coastlines of the areas where the cocaine bricks are usually being recovered. The PNP leadership also warned fishermen and residents of coastal towns not to keep cocaine bricks as this would spell out trouble once police would confiscate it from them. Some local police commanders have already pledged to give a sack of rice for every cocaine brick that would be recovered.