Phnom Penh (FN), Feb.02 – Minister of Interior on Feb. 2 called on authorities of all relevant institutions to work harder searching, tracking and chasing after drug ringleaders and ultimately cut off their communication networks in Cambodia.

In his address to the closing session of the annual meeting of the National Authority for Combating Drugs (NACD) which was held to wrap up its achievements of 2015 and to set up new goals for the following year, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Interior Sar Kheng said that drug trafficking is an issue of serious concern for the government and for every citizen. It is a complicated problem that has come in existence for quite a long time, he said.

According to a report read out by Gen. Meas Virith, Secretary General of the NACD, a total number of 3,061 cases were handled by anti-drug police in 2015, 129 percent increase compared with 2014. As a result, 7,008 drug-dealers and users were arrested of whom 853 were women, an increase of 123 percent compared with 2014. At the same time, over 1 ton and 620kg of hard evidence and drug-producing substances were seized.