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Tuesday, March 19, 2024

Go twits Leni: ‘Tokhang’ turns into ‘toklang’

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Senator Christopher Lawrence Go Wednesday thanked Vice President Leni Robredo after she threatened to reveal what she discovered during her short stint as co-chair of the Inter-Agency Committee on Anti-Illegal Drugs.

Robredo, in a speech before new graduates of a fellowship program in New Manila in Quezon City, declined to comment, when asked, on her fight against illegal drugs.

But she called on the 39 graduates to do their best in serving the people amid “so many limitations to be a true leader.”

Go, who stressed the government’s war on drugs should not be politicized, warned drug lords that their “vacation is over” now that  Robredo had been sacked from ICAD. 

“To the drug lords, your vacation is over,” said Go, adding during Robredo’s two-week stint with ICAD, they have  been hearing about her program “Toklang [talk lang].”

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He stressed that the Duterte Administration’s fight against illegal drugs continued, emphasizing the government’s commitment to put an end to the illegal drug menace in the country. 

While the government tries to be inclusive in welcoming ideas and suggestions from everyone, Go said it was difficult to mix administration and opposition members in the fight against illegal drugs as it was a “delicate” policy matter. 

Meanwhile, detained Senator Leila de Lima said  Robredo’s removal from ICAD less than three weeks into her appointment was proof that the President was afraid to let her win the anti-narcotics campaign.

De Lima has maintained that President Rodrigo Duterte effectively admitted he was defeated in his own challenge to Robredo to rid the country of illegal drugs when he unceremoniously fired her as the country’s “drug czar.”

READ: Rody fires Leni from ICAD

“By firing VP Leni Robredo, he has admitted that he was caught in his own trap, defeated in his own challenge, and thoroughly exposed as a man without honor and whose word is as good as the next lie that comes out of his big mouth,” she added.

Last Nov. 6, the vice president accepted Duterte’s dare for her to sit as co-chair of the government’s task force against illegal drugs despite well-meaning warnings from her allies that it could be a trap that was doomed to fail.

More than two weeks as co-chair of the anti-drug body, Presidential Spokesman Salvador Panelo confirmed that Duterte decided to fire the Vice President from her post for allegedly using the post for “grandstanding.”

Duterte has publicly admitted he did not want Robredo to hold a Cabinet post because he did not trust her and that he disliked how the vice president consulted international organizations as co-chair of the ICAD.

During her 19-day tenure, Robredo visited community-based rehabilitation centers for drug dependents and drug-infested communities and consulted officials from the US and United Nations.

READ: Robredo taps US for drug war

He said Duterte showed the public that “Malacañang’s official stationery on which appointments are written is as good as toilet paper, and that his signature is worth a three-year-old’s doodle.”

At the same time, Senator Ronald dela Rosa called on the law enforcement officials to ‘go the extra mile’ in their efforts to win the government’s “war on drugs” as he reminded them to always put God first in all the anti-illegal drugs operations to ensure preserving the precious life of every individual.

Speaking before the officials, employees and guests at the Dangerous Drugs Board’s culminating event for the Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Week 2019 in Quezon City recently, Dela Rosa issued the call to encourage the anti-illegal drugs operatives to work united and even harder to save more lives from the evils of the illegal substance. 

The former police chief, who led the Duterte administrative’s massive anti-illegal drugs campaign, also underscored the crucial role of the people in efforts to win the ‘drug war’.

“We have enough government agencies addressing the drug problem, but what matters most is the support and cooperation of every member of the community. What will help us win this war is our united and strong front against illegal drugs,” Dela Rosa said..

He said that since the launch of his brainchild “Toktok Hangyo”, (knock and plead) which was later called “Tokhang,” claiming many drug dependents had surrendered and receded from using the illegal substance. 

Dela Rosa, meanwhile, gave assurances his continued support to all the government’s efforts to ensure victory against the illegal drugs. 

“I may no longer be at the frontlines in the war on drugs but I am making sure that I remain at the frontlines in legislative efforts to help put an end to the illegal drug problem in the country,” Dela Rosa said.

Robredo led the graduation ceremony for the first batch of the Angat Buhay Young Leaders in Government Fellowship Program, a joint initiative between the Office of the Vice President and Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung Philippines. 

At least  39 fellows in various designations from agencies in both local and national levels were graduated.

“Even if the job is uninspiring, is not motivational and all you do is being blocked, don’t get affected. Just do your job,” Robredo said.

“Amid disappointment, always look for solutions and do not pass the blame on others,” she added. 

READ: ‘Most drugs in PH from China’

READ: Duterte: Give Leni greater leeway

READ: Locsin joins fray, blames LP for Robredo’s fall

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