Congress approves House Bill 4660, PDEA hopes for Senate enactment

The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency welcomed the approval of Congress of a house bill amending Republic Act 9165 or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002, particularly Section 21 of Article II.

PDEA director general Undersecretary Jose S. Gutierrez Jr. said the new House Bill 4660 demonstrates the support of the House of Representatives to PDEA and the drug enforcement community, as a whole. "The approved bill would help prevent the dismissal of drug cases due to technicalities in the custody and disposition of drug evidence," Gutierrez said.

House Bill 4660, approved by Congress on final reading on October 10, 2011, is amending the current provision of the law on the presence of three witnesses together with the accused or his counsel during inventory of drug evidence. The bill is reducing the required number of inventory witnesses of drug evidence from three to one – an elected public official, or a representative from the Department of Justice, or the media.

The bill also allows for the conduct of physical inventory in a nearest police station or the nearest office of the apprehending team as long as the integrity and evidentiary value of the seized items are properly preserved by the apprehending officer or team.

In case of warrantless seizures, non-compliance to said requirements "under justifiable grounds" shall not render such seizures and custody of evidence void or invalid "as long as the integrity and the evidentiary value of the seized items are properly preserved by the apprehending officers or team.

Another salient feature of the bill is the removal of the 24-hour deadline for the issuance of the examination results of seized items seized as certified by a forensic laboratory.

"Indeed, this is a welcome development for operating units as the new provisions in the house bill are operationally practical. We would like to thank the members of Congress for being responsive to the clamor to strengthen the anti-drug law by providing legally available measures to favor law enforcement procedures," the PDEA chief said.

Gutierrez is optimistic that the Senate will treat the proposed bill with the same level of importance, adding that PDEA is looking forward to the day when the bill will finally be enacted into law. - PIA — ARA