My God, I Hate Drugs!

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This what President Rodrigo Duterte used to say that would normally cause my elitist friends to chuckle in scorn during the early parts of the campaign. Little did they know that his anti-drug platform would make Duterte win. I voted for him because of this, in fact. Why? Because the issue hits close to home. Many times I wished drugs never came to my family. I grew up with older brothers who were drug addicts. They have outgrown the addiction but many times in the past I wished I was older than them. They did not hurt me but there were times that they actually thought of burning the house down whenever they were mad at our mother. My father died in 2005 when I was just raising my own family. My brothers are a decade older than me so while my father was able to support them and their families (kids' education, housing, business), I had to send my kids to school on my own and up to now, I still don't have my own house because all my income goes to my kids' needs. I have always thought that if I were older than my brothers, I could have actually guided them away from such vices and helped my parents. There were worse cases for my neighbors. One of my childhood friends even threatened to kill his own mom because she wouldn't give him money so he could buy drugs. Another childhood friend committed suicide while he was high. There were many factors why they did drugs, but one of these is the prevalence of illegal drugs in my country. As a mom, I have always feared that my kids will someday turn to drugs or might be victimized by drug addicts. Nobody really paid attention to the drug problem. Until Duterte became President. Now we see drug addicts surrendering to the authorities in droves that they had to be sent back to their homes because the rehabilitation centers could no longer accommodate them. Hundreds of thousands of drug pushers have also surrendered which now brings to fore the problem of jail congestion in almost all parts of the country. What makes me sick the most is the discovery that corrupt politicians and law enforcers have made the illegal drug trade as their milking cow. I can't stomach the fact that they fed on drug money while families become dysfunctional and the youth hopeless. They don't mind at all that the most heinous of crimes were committed by those who are high on drugs as long as they get their kickbacks from the illegal drug business. Of course I am also saddened by the possibility that some innocent civilians have served as collateral damage in this war on drugs. But I also understand that if we allow the drug problem to persist, it will destroy the moral fabric of the Filipino family and society. I am aware that many of the killings were perpetrated by the syndicates themselves or by corrupt police who needed to silence others who are involved. All because the President is serious about it.