May we be able to intensify surveillance, law enforcement, and, more importantly, preventive measuresJakarta (ANTARA) - The Jakarta provincial government has said it will continue to work with the Jakarta Metropolitan Police and other stakeholders to break the chain of drug crimes and make the Indonesian capital drug-free.
To achieve the noble goal of making Jakarta a drug-free city, preventing drug misuse and addiction and law enforcement against drug offenders are indispensable, Jakarta Deputy Governor Ahmad Riza Patria said here on Wednesday.
"May we be able to intensify surveillance, law enforcement, and, more importantly, preventive measures," he told journalists on the sidelines of the Jakarta Police's drug disposal event.
Patria said the government appreciated the Jakarta Metropolitan Police's excellent achievement in the war on drugs and endeavors to prevent community members from being dragged into the vicious cycle of drug addiction.
The Jakarta Metropolitan Police on Wednesday destroyed several hundred kilograms of drugs seized in raids between October, 2020 and January, 2021.
The seized drugs comprise 217.44 kg of crystal methamphetamine, 801.48 kg of cannabis, 18 thousand ecstasy pills, and 1.37 kg of Gorilla tobacco, Jakarta Metropolitan Police chief, Insp.Gen.Fadil Imran, said.
The drugs were confiscated from 24 suspected drug dealers and couriers in connection with nine cases of domestic and trans-national drug crimes, he added.
Imran said his men will continue to hunt down drug offenders amid the coronavirus pandemic because drug-trafficking has been categorized as an extraordinary crime.
The Jakarta Metropolitan Police also support endeavors to make Jakarta a drug-free city, he said, adding that continuing the collective war on drugs is aimed at saving the future of Indonesia's younger generation.
Indonesian capital Jakarta remains vulnerable to drug trade.
On January 22, 2021, West Jakarta Metropolitan Police thwarted a 22-year-old drug courier's attempt to deliver a crystal meth package.
The suspect, identified by his initials as S, was arrested in the Kapuk Muara neighborhood, Penjaringan sub-district, North Jakarta, chief of the West Jakarta Police Narcotics Unit, Adjunct Sen.Coms.Ronaldo Maradona Siregar, said.
Domestic and trans-national drug dealers consider Indonesia a potential market owing to its vast population and millions of drug users. The drug trade in the nation is valued at nearly Rp66 trillion.
People from all strata of society are falling prey to drugs in the country regardless of their socio-economic and professional backgrounds.
The Indonesian government has taken harsh punitive action against drug kingpins found smuggling and trading drugs in the country over the past few decades.
While the National Narcotics Agency (BNN) has sought capital punishment for those involved in drug trade in the country, President Joko Widodo has issued shoot-at-sight orders against drug kingpins.
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Translator: Ricky P, Rahmad Nasution
Editor: Gusti Nur Cahya Aryani
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