Reyes said Gov. Benigno R. Fitial continues “to take the issue seriously and will continue to combat the problem.”
He said local law enforcement, including the Department of Public Safety, the Division of Customs and other agencies are addressing the issue and enforce the law.
DEA senior special agent Daniel Holcomb earlier said that islands’ drug trafficking problem is getting worse.
He said Chinese organized crime syndicate is responsible for smuggling “ice” into the CNMI.
When asked to comment yesterday, Holcomb referred this reporter to DEA’s Guam office.
DEA Guam resident agent in-charge Antonio Marquez was in a meeting when this reporter called his office.
Rep. Victor B. Hocog, Ind-Rota, said the DEA should show documents that can justify Holcomb’s disclosure.
“If they are really positive with that, they should come up with a comprehensive report to justify that that our drug program is really bad,” Hocog said.
He described Holcolmb’s assessment as “old talk with no substantiating documents or evidence to back it up.”
The House, he said, may summon the DEA agent to appear before the lawmakers and discuss the CNMI’s drug problems.
“I support a crack down on illegal drug activity because it does not belong to these islands, but it is also very important that if we don’t make baseless allegations,” he said.
Reyes said the governor’s office will not demand for documents that support Holcomb’s statement.
“Whether a weaker economy would reduce or increase the demand for illegal drugs, arguments can be made on both sides, but reliable numbers would indeed be very useful,” he said.
