DAVAO CITY (MindaNews/27 Feb) — Shabu (methamphetamine hydrochloride) no longer the poor man’s cocaine as it is has become “more expensive than cocaine and is more in demand,” the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) here said.
Emerson Rosales, PDEA regional officer-in-charge, said shabu sells for P10,000 to P12,000 a gram while cocaine sells for P6,000 a gram.
Rosales noted that because illegal drug users could not find cocaine, they settle for shabu, thus pushing the price of shabu up and the price of
cocaine down.
He said the sole catch of cocaine in the region happened in December 2009, all 16 kilos of it placed inside a supposed empty container van. Rosales and other narcotics authorities inspecting the contraband, believe it was not intended for the Davao market, although Rosales said the Davao Region users of illegal drugs could afford that market value.
“In 2009, all illegal drugs we intercepted were valued at P100 million,” he said. “Mostly, these were shabu and marijuana.
”
He said illegal drug users in the region could absorb and afford this volume of illegal drugs entering the region which comprises the three Davao
provinces (Davao del Norte, del Sur and Oriental) and the cities of Davao, Digos, Tagum, Panabo and Island Garden City of Samal.
“Users now prefer shabu but they could also afford cocaine,” he said, adding the low market price of cocaine is due to the difficulty in sourcing it.
