PDEA airs alarm over drug mule problem

MANILA, Philippines - Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) chief Dionisio Santiago yesterday said he is pressing the panic button because the drug mule problem is getting out of hand.

He said the escalating international drug trade, compounded by the increasing incidence of Filipinos arrested for being drug couriers in other countries, have prompted his agency to raise alarm levels.

“This is not good anymore. The situation is getting out of hand.

Seemingly, our countrymen are getting more desperate and resorting to even more drastic and even dangerous activities in their bid to enjoy the good life,” Santiago said.

The statement was in response to recent reports of Filipinas being caught trying to smuggle illegal drugs into or out of various countries in Asia and South America.

One Filipina was recently held in Brazil for possession of five kilos of cocaine and the other, a schoolteacher, was nabbed for suspected drug smuggling in China carrying nearly two kilos of heroin.

Santiago said arrests have resulted in the exposure of a new recruiting scheme of international drug syndicates: hiring professionals as drug mules to avoid suspicion.

“Time and again, despite repeated reminders and advisories, our kababayans simply refuse to heed the warning. But I would like to believe that in all likelihood, Filipinos are being recruited rather than deceived,” he said.