House drugs panel sets probe on Laos shipment

The House Committee on Dangerous Drugs is set to conduct a congressional inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the attempted smuggling of P3.5 billion worth of dangerous drugs from Laos to the Philippines.

The committee’s chairperson Las Pinas Rep. Mark Anthony Santos revealed on Wednesday that the panel would be calling ten government officials from concerned government agencies to participate in the probe.

“The briefing will focus on verified facts, the status of the ongoing investigations by concerned agencies, the basis for establishing any Philippine connection to the shipment, and measures to prevent the entry of illegal drugs and combat related transnational criminal activities,” Santos stated.

It was noted that among the officials that would be summoned to the briefing would be Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Jonvic Remulla and Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) Director General Undersecretary Isagani Nerez.

Santos noted that Remulla would be called during the discussion as he had previously identified pertinent officials who were allegedly involved in the operations, including former Bangsamoro Parliament member Edriezan Hadji Nasser Rimbang.

Another name that was floated by the secretary was Police Executive Master Sergeant Aileen Mendoza from the Philippine National Police Aviation Security Group.

Rimbang was the alleged financier of the drug trade while Mendoza was the individual that had arranged the flight details of the aircraft that would be used for the shipment.

The attempted smuggling was seized in Luang Prabang International Airport in Laos, involving 23 suitcases which were supposedly declared as vape products.

The shipment was reportedly set to be transferred to a Learjet 55B which was bound for Manila last 1 October.

Even with the publicly available information, Santos explained that they would still be keen on gathering additional evidence to better understand the roles of the individuals that were named in the illegal transaction.

He also stated that a goal of the inquiry was to determine if further actions were needed from the legislative or law enforcement agencies of the government.

“We will follow the evidence wherever it leads. No one should be beyond scrutiny when the objective is to protect the public from the illegal drug trade. At the same time, allegations must be examined fairly, and every individual must be given the opportunity to respond,” he said.

The briefing is set this Thursday, 22 October, amid concerns that drug syndicates had expanded their transnational reach to have the ability to transport drugs into the country.