GENERAL SANTOS CITY–World-renowned boxer Manny Pacquiao will be the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency’s poster boy against illegal drugs in Central Mindanao.
Supt. Edwin Minion, PDEA-12 chief, told reporters he would be meeting with the Filipino ring icon who hails from this South Cotabato city to discuss details of the campaign.
The idea of making the country’s most famous boxing hero an antidrugs crusader had originally come from PDEA Director Dionisio Santiago, Minion said.
Santiago said during a visit here last month that Pacquiao could help ensure the success of the government’s drive against illegal drugs because of his popularity, especially among the youth.
He also did not use drugs, Minion said, which would make Pacquiao a most effective PDEA poster boy.
“You will not become a Manny Pacquiao if you are a drug user. So I think his success atop the ring would have great influence, especially in the lives of our youth,” Minion said.
The PDEA has stepped up its antidrugs campaign in Central Mindanao following reports the region has become a transshipment point for narcotics.
PO2 Jonas Badilla, PDEA-12 person, told reporters that there were at least 300 people actively involved in the illegal drug trade in the region.
He said some of them were even policemen and government employees.
Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte has also tagged some prominent personalities in Central Mindanao as among those involved in the drug trade in the city.
