By Leilanie Adriano

DESTROYED. Government anti-drug enforcers destroy marijuana plants in Sugpon, Ilocos Sur, on Thursday (March 19, 2026). Marijuana cultivation continues to thrive in remote and hard-to-reach areas. (Photo courtesy of PDEA Regional Office 1)

LAOAG CITY － The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) destroyed PHP2.1 million worth of marijuana plants this week in the highlands of Sugpon, Ilocos Sur province.

In a statement on Friday, PDEA said 11,600 pieces of fully grown marijuana plants were seized in a 1,700-square-meter land area in Barangay Licungan in Sugpon, Ilocos Sur, on March 19.

Authorities said no cultivator was arrested, and the landowner remains unidentified.

“We are hitting the source to starve the drug supply chain,” PDEA Regional Director Julius Paredes said in a statement.

This is now the agency’s third successful operation this month in Sugpon town, where around PHP5.3 million worth of marijuana plants were destroyed by authorities during their series of operations from March 4 to 6.

In compliance with Section 21 of Republic Act 9165 or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002, the uprooted marijuana plants were immediately burned and destroyed onsite, PDEA said. The destruction process was documented and witnessed by representatives of the operating units, who signed the Certificate of Destruction. (PNA)