In an interview after the 13th anniversary celebration of the the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA), Poe reiterated that she is more comfortable running with Senator Francis Escudero in case she eventually decides to run for president in next year's elections.
Poe also noted that running as an independent candidate with a coalition has its benefits, saying it will always be the interest of the Filipino people and not of the party that will be prioritized.
In the 2013 senatorial elections, both Poe and Escudero ran as independent candidates but under the banner of the Liberal Party (LP)-led coalition Team PNoy.
Following the recent attacks and questions on her citizenship and residency, Poe reiterated that she is qualified to run in 2016.
She pointed out that she came back to the Philippines in 2003 to campaign for her father, the late action king Fernando Poe Jr., who ran for president.
She renounced her dual citizenship in 2010.
Meanwhile, ABS-News spotted in Metro Manila several Grace Poe stickers for 2016. Many of her supporters say that Poe is honest and has genuine concern for the poor.
In her address to PDEA personnel during their anniversary celebration, the senator said out of the five requests of the leadership of the agency, one has been granted, which is to amend the three-witness rule in the Dangerous Drugs Act.
With the amended law, only two witnesses are needed for PDEA agents to operate against drug pushers.
Poe said she is still working on the hazard pay and additional reward money for informants.
PDEA Director General Arturo Cacdac, meanwhile, admitted that based on their survey, 92 percent of barangays in Metro Manila are affected by illegal drugs.
Cacdac said the fight against drugs should be a multi-sectoral approach which starts with the family.
source: www.abs-cbnnews.com
