Malacañang on Sunday announced the appointment of former Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) chief Dionisio Santiago as chairman of the Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB). Santiago headed the DDB after President Rodrigo Duterte fired Benjamin Reyes for contradicting him on the number of drug addicts in the country. Duterte fired Reyes for saying there were only 1.8 million drug addicts when the President has been saying in his public speeches that there were 4 million drug dependents. It was also from Santiago that Duterte learned that there were 3 million drug addicts in the country five years ago, the President had said. JE/rgaREAD: Duterte fires drugs board chair

Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer July 09, 2017 05:15 UTC