Ex-PNP SAF commander named as PDEA chief

Moro Virgilio Lazo, a retired police general, has been chosen by President Ferdinand R. Marcos to lead the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA).

Undersecretary Cheloy Garafil, the person in charge of the Office of the Press Secretary, announced Lazo’s appointment on Thursday evening.

Wilkins Villanueva will be replaced as director general of the PDEA, the government body in charge of the anti-drug operation, by Lazo.

In a Facebook post, Villanueva released a picture of the appointment letter that Marcos signed on October 19.

Lazo is a 1984 graduate of the “Maharlika” class of the Philippine Military Academy.

Lazo joined the elite Special Action Force of the Philippine National Police (PNP) in 1984 after receiving his PMA degree (SAF).

In March 2015, he was the SAF director.

During the administration of the late president Fidel V. Ramos, he was also a member of the Presidential Security Group.

Lazo also held the positions of regional director for Central Luzon, head of the provincial police in the provinces of Benguet and Cagayan, and chief of the PNP’s Firearms and Explosives Office.

Marcos committed to continue the fight against illegal drugs but stressed that the strategy will be different, emphasizing the rehabilitation and treatment of drug addicts.

Villanueva thanked PDEA for the past 20 years of service in a Facebook post.

“It is with profound gratitude that I close my two decades of professional service to God and country in the field of drug law enforcement,” he said.

“My profound thanks also to His Excellency President Ferdinand Romualdez Marcos, Jr. for allowing me to continue serving as the seventh Director General until my worthy successor was appointed as of October 19, 2022,” Villanueva added.

Leaving behind a “legacy of professional, dynamic, excellence-driven and accountable drug law enforcers,” Villanueva vowed to continue supporting the Marcos administration’s campaign against illegal drugs.