The Philippine National Police (PNP) is "suspending immediately" its anti-drug campaign after President Rodrigo Duterte said the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) will be the sole agency to do this.

"All DEU (drug enforcement units) from regional offices down to police stations are ordered dissolved", said Chief Superintendent Dionardo Carlos, PNP spokesman, to Daily Manila Shimbun in a viber message.

"Implementation of Project Double Barrel and Oplan Tokhang are suspended immediately", Carlos added

Carlos said the PNP will focus on solving riding-in-tandem cases.

"Through the order of the chief PNP, we will now craft our strategy focusing on motorcycle riding vehicles", Carlos said in a press briefing on Thursday.

Carlos said the PNP is waiting for implementing guidelines on the strategy to cope with riding-in- tandem crimes.

He said the crime rate has "clearly" decreased from the past eight months including riding in tandem incidents. "Clearly in the past eight months, the crime rate has decreased including the number of motorcycle riding-in-tandems", he said.

The PNP said in their press release the murder rate dropped to 6391 cases from January to August 2017 compared to the 6945 from January to August 2016. Alanna Ambi/DMS