THE Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA 7) believes that the upcoming holidays of Christmas and Sinulog would see an increase in the sales of various illegal substances, especially party drugs.
Leia Alcantara, PDEA 7's communication officer, stated that as a result, the narcotics agents will step up their intelligence surveillance of illegal drugs in tandem with the police.
"Actually, we expect that there may be a slight increase in the demand for drugs, especially during Christmas when the bonuses are given. People would be wealthy or have plenty of opportunity to earn money, so we are heightening our monitoring, not only in Cebu City, but also in other provinces," Alcantara stated in Cebuano.
In addition to shabu, which is typically used by average people, the PDEA 7 will keep an eye on wealthy people's usage of party drugs like Ecstasy in entertainment joints, including nightclubs, concerts, and discos.
The agency will coordinate with the management of entertainment venues in their monitoring activity.
Alcantara urged the bar management or anybody else who witnesses someone selling narcotics in their establishment to report the matter to the police or even their office so that the issue can be addressed right away.
Cebu City and Province are among the most sought-after destinations for both domestic and foreign visitors due to the abundance of entertainment options during Christmas and Sinulog.
Alcantara said that PDEA 7 officers, equipped with sniffer dogs, will inspect people attending events in order to stop illegal drugs from entering the entertainment venues.
It can be recalled that on January 19, 2019, a 19-year-old woman died after allegedly ingesting a party drug during a concert. (AYB, TPT)