Baguio mayor to PNP: Validate drug reports

‘Trial by publicity’ 

By Dexter A. See

BAGUIO CITY  – Mayor Mauricio G. Domogan urged police operatives, intelligence agents and anti-narcotics personnel to verify and validate inclusion of politicians, judges and police and military officials allegedly involved in illegal drug trade before submitting their classified information to higher authorities to avoid inclusion of innocent individuals who will be subjected to trial by publicity.

The mayor made the appeal to the Baguio City Police Office, Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency and the Criminal investigation and Detection Group after the inclusion of Judge Antonio Reyes of the Regional Trial Court,  Branch 61 or the city’s special anti-drug court in list of those allegedly involved in syndicated drug trade in the country.

He said law enforcer must make sure about veracity of reports reaching them before submitting the list to higher authorities like President Rodrigo Duterte.

In 2013, the Regional Advisory Council of the CIDG-CAR which was chaired by the city mayor passed a resolution requesting the Supreme Court to dissolve the city’s anti-drug court and that drug cases that will be filed should be raffled to the different courts in the city.

 However, Domogan disclosed the SC never acted on the request for over three years now for still unknown reasons until the controversy on the alleged involvement of Judge Reyes to the illegal drug trade in the city based on the list of officials linked to the lucrative trade announced by President Duterte last Sunday.

According to him, there is nothing wrong in the anti-drug campaign of the administration because exposure of the youth to illegal drugs will  compromise their future but law enforcers must take precaution to avoid involving innocent individuals in operations and  subject to criticism.    Domogan urged those involved in the drug trade to voluntarily surrender to barangay officials and law enforcers.