Photo courtesy of Philippine News Agency.
The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) reported that more than 94 percent of drug-affected villages in Pangasinan were cleared, leaving only 68 communities still struggling with illegal drugs.
PDEA-Pangasinan provincial officer Dexter Asayco said the remaining villages still had drug personalities under surveillance and required a Balay Silangan facility to meet clearing requirements.
He explained that many of those under monitoring had participated in rehabilitation programs, which improved compliance with clearing rules, but not all barangays had Balay Silangan centers.
Asayco added that agreements were being forged with local governments that had Balay Silangan, though funding constraints made full coverage difficult.
The province has a total of 1,364 barangays across four cities and 44 towns.
Joint operations by police, maritime, and coast guard units, together with local officials, prevented attempts to use the province as a transit hub for illegal drugs.
In October, authorities recovered 895 kilograms of shabu worth nearly Php 6.1 billion in a residential house in Barangay Laois, Labrador.
The operation followed the arrest of a Chinese and his Filipino driver in a buy-bust in Barangay Polong, Bugallon, where 125 kilograms of shabu valued at Php 850 million were confiscated, bringing the two-day total to at least Php 6.9 billion.
