MANILA, Philippines — Vice President Leni Robredo met with US officials Wednesday to discuss the status of the two countries' cooperation on the campaign against illegal drugs.
The vice president recently assumed a role in the government's anti-narcotics campaign as co-chairperson of the Inter-agency Committee on Anti-Illegal Drugs.
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The US Embassy in Manila said Robredo met with an interagency US government working-level delegation with officers from the US Federal Bureau of Investigation, Drug Enforcement Agency, Department of State and US Agency for International Development.
Upon Robredo's request, the US delegation briefed her on the status of the Philippines-US anti-drugs cooperation, which she described as comprehensive.
"Napag-usapan din ang mga kakulangan sa kasalukuyang kampanya at ang mga tulong na maaari pa nilang maibigay para lalong paigtingin ang kampanya laban sa droga," Robredo said in a statement.
(We also talked about the shortcomings of the current campaign and the help that they could provide to improve the campaign against illegal drugs.)
According to Robredo, some suggestions were setting clear baseline data in the country's drug situation, reviewing the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act and strengthening programs on drug use prevention and community-based drug rehabilitation.
Robredo earlier expressed gratitude to US Ambassador to the Philippines Sung Kim for Washington's commitment to help solve the country's drug problem.
Earlier this week, the vice president also met with United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime officials to discuss best practices in tackling the drug menace.