Note: This article was originally published in The Asian Correspondent on 20 October 2017. ERIA's High Level Forum on ASEAN@50 was mentioned.

AMID mounting criticisms and declining net satisfaction ratings on his deadly drug war, President Rodrigo Duterte has changed course, replacing the police force with the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) as the “sole agency” to combat the narcotics menace. (Read the full article by using the link above).