MANILA – An official of the Philippine National Police (PNP) on Tuesday ordered all chiefs of police to regularly update their illegal drugs watchlist as part of the efforts to continue the campaign against illegal drugs.

Maj. Gen. Valeriano de Leon, PNP director for operations, said there is a need to beef up the intelligence gathering to identify those who continue dealing with illegal drugs in the community.

“We cannot lower our guard because there will be new players who may take over the operations of the drug traffickers that we neutralize. We should not allow that to happen,” de Leon said in a statement.

De Leon reminded all police commanders to continue the aggressive campaign against illegal drugs amid concerns that anti-illegal drug operations will weaken once President Rodrigo Duterte steps down on June 30.

De Leon said the PNP has developed a new strategy to prevent drug syndicates from continuing their illegal operations.

The operations and law enforcement would be backed by an aggressive information drive and education campaign aimed at students, who are often the target customers of illegal drug syndicates.

De Leon said he is certain that incoming President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. will continue the anti-illegal drugs campaign.

“This is proof that incoming President Marcos really appreciates what President Duterte has started and this serves as an assurance of the continuous support of the next administration to the aggressive campaign against illegal drugs,” De Leon said.

He said there is a need to continue the drug war since there has been a significant decrease in the crime volume since it was started in July 2016.

In Metro Manila alone, the crime volume dropped by more than 50 percent in the first three years of the Duterte administration. (PNA)