Who runs the day-to-day secretariat of the Dangerous Drugs Board and what does that office cover?

The Executive Director's role and qualifications

The Executive Director is the secretariat's top administrative officer and formally serves as Secretary of the Board, holding the rank of undersecretary. The President makes the appointment, but only on the Board's own recommendation, and the law requires the appointee to already have adequate knowledge, training, and experience in dangerous drugs matters combined with a background in law enforcement, law, medicine, criminology, psychology, or social work. That requirement is meant to ensure the office is led by someone technically equipped to manage national drug-control programs rather than a purely administrative hire.

The two deputies executive director

Two deputies, one for administration and one for operations, support the Executive Director and hold the rank of assistant secretary. Like the Executive Director, the President appoints them on the Board's recommendation, and they must meet the same qualification standards. Their compensation is set as Career Service Officers under the Salary Standardization Law rather than negotiated individually. This structure keeps day-to-day drug-policy administration staffed by career officials with relevant technical backgrounds rather than purely political appointees. It also creates a layer of continuity below the Board's own membership, since deputies with the necessary technical background remain in place even as the Board's ex officio and appointed members change over time.

How the secretariat is organized

Under the Executive Director's control and supervision, the secretariat is divided into four working divisions: Policy Studies, Research and Statistics; Preventive Education, Training and Information; Legal Affairs; and Administrative and Financial Management. Each division handles a distinct function, from generating the data behind national drug policy to running public education campaigns and managing the Board's internal legal and financial matters. This division-based structure lets the Board separate research and statistics work from public-facing education efforts and from its own internal legal and administrative functions.

Why this office matters to the public

People engaging with the Dangerous Drugs Board on licensing, accreditation, research requests, or legal correspondence are generally dealing with this secretariat rather than the Board's seventeen members directly, since the Executive Director's office is the administrative point of contact for its day-to-day work. Knowing which division within the secretariat handles a given concern, such as Legal Affairs for formal correspondence or Preventive Education for community programs, can help direct an inquiry to the right office. For a lawyer or applicant trying to track down a specific record or request, that division-based structure is often the fastest route to the right desk.

Related provisions

• RA 9165, Section 80 — Secretariat Of The Board
• RA 9165, Section 79 — Meetings And Quorum
• RA 9165, Section 81 — Powers And Duties Of The Board