House to probe PDEA anomaly

The House committee on dangerous drugs will conduct a congressional inquiry into the recent controversy hounding the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency.

"Yes, we will conduct a congressional inquiry on this matter," Cebu City south district Rep. Antonio Cuenco, the committee's vice chairman, told The Freeman. He said PDEA should be investigated since it is the agency tasked with a very sensitive function.

Cuenco was dismayed upon learning that police allegedly took the money and other items belonging to some of those arrested in the September 2004 raid on the mega shabu laboratory in barangay Umapad, Mandaue City.

The lawmaker said the matter would be included in the inquiry after the result of the chemical analysis of the P3.65 billion pseudopherine, which was seized by the Bureau of Customs in 2004, is released.

Cuenco was also dismayed over why PDEA officials failed to file charges against those involved in the illegal shipment. "Tingbon ta ning tanan. The guilty should be kicked out from the agency and should be put to jail where they belong."

With regards to the encashed check, Cuenco said he would ask PDEA regional director Sr. Supt. Amado Marquez and legal consultant Paul Clarence Oaminal to present to him Francis Motoc, said to be a PDEA agent who encashed the check from a certain Reynaldo Macias.

"Ato-a ning ipaimbistigar kung kinsa ni si Motoc ug ngano man na encashed man ang cheke," he said.

Motoc's name appeared after Macias came out in the open and executed a sworn affidavit last week before lawyer Vicente E. Fernandez II, one of the defense counsels in the mega shabu case.

Macias said he merely rediscounted the check from Motoc, whom he said was his regular customer, claiming that he did not know how Motoc obtained the check.

Fernandez, who represents Tao Fei and Liu Bo, two of the 14 accused in the case, earlier presented the encashed check worth P40,000 during the court hearing two weeks ago.

The check was drawn from an Allied Bank account in the name of another accused, Joseph Yu. - Mitchelle L. Palaubsanon