"As much as 90 kilograms of shabu-shabu have been confiscated after conducting investigations during three months in 2017," Nasrullah stated here on Tuesday.
He explained that the smuggled narcotics were only about 20 percent of the actual quantity brought illegally into the country.
"Based on research data, only 20 percent of the drugs have been confiscated, or in other words, as much as 80 percent of the drugs are still in circulation and used by addicts," he pointed out.
According to his partys research, at least 65 kilograms of drugs were supposedly consumed daily by about 65 thousand drug addicts of the total 5.3 million population of West Kalimantan Province.
"In the last three months, five of the 11 targeted cases have been successfully revealed and solved," he stated.
Nasrullah acknowledged that the limited number of personnel did pose a challenge for the agency to expose the smuggling of drugs. Hence, he highlighted the need for establishing synergy between related institutions and stakeholders, including the police, Indonesian Military, and communities in a bid to save Indonesian people from the threat of drugs.
"We expect to see an increase in the number of personnel in West Kalimantans National Narcotics Agency in a bid to anticipate the entry of illicit drugs into the province," he hoped.
Based on data of the West Kalimantan Police, the land border between West Kalimantan and Malaysia is around 857 kilometers, covering 55 villages in the province that could connect to 32 villages in Malaysia.
Earlier, the center and West Kalimantan Provinces National Narcotics Agency had foiled an attempt to smuggle as much as 15.39 kilograms of shabu-shabu entering from Malaysia via a cross-border post of Entikong, Sanggau District, in the province.
During the arrest, three suspects, identified as Rob, RN, and Sya, were taken into custody. The suspects were carrying shabu-shabu in a black Innova car, bearing the number plate KB 1783 AU, in Senyabang Village, Batang Tarang Sub-district, Sanggau District.
Sya was shot dead during the operation to thwart the drug smuggling, as the suspect had attempted to fight off the officers.(*)
Editor: Heru Purwanto
Copyright © ANTARA 2017
