Public Satisfaction at 79.2%, Bareskrim's Narcotics Directorate Intensifies Response to New Drug Trends
The Narcotics Crime Directorate of Bareskrim Polri, in accordance with legislative directives, President Prabowo Subianto, and Police Chief General Listyo Sigit Prabowo, has stated that it is serious in its efforts to enforce the law against drug crimes. This is being done to protect the public from the dangers and threats of drug abuse.
The seriousness is evident from data on case detections, suspect detentions, and seizure of evidence, which have consistently increased each year. Based on the data received, drug case detections this year are nearly equal to those in 2025; in mid-2026, Dittipidnarkoba has uncovered 15,571 cases, whereas in 2025, it uncovered 16,279 cases.
In enforcing the law against drug crimes, Dittipidnarkoba Bareskrim Polri also promptly follows up on reports and information regarding drug abuse submitted by the public and shows no favouritism in taking action against drug crimes, such as cases involving or committed by rogue officials.
Additionally, Dittipidnarkoba Bareskrim Polri is known to be responsive to the latest trends employed by dark trade syndicates in narcotics, which exploit loopholes in drug crime enforcement by marketing harmful substances or materials solely for immense profits, such as the firm action taken by authorities against the abuse of the new narcotic type etomidate (vape liquid) and the abuse of Whip Pink or N₂O (nitrous oxide), known as dinitrogen oxide or laughing gas, which has recently become prevalent.
In particular, with the widespread circulation and abuse of vapes containing etomidate in Indonesia, the Narcotics Crime Directorate of Bareskrim Polri is striving to include etomidate in the narcotic category through amendments to the Narcotic Classification in the Minister of Health’s Regulation. This is aimed at achieving stronger law enforcement through Law No. 35 of 2009.
The efforts by Dittipidnarkoba Bareskrim Polri involve holding NPS (New Psychoactive Substances) meetings with the National Committee on Narcotics, Psychotropics & Precursors and the Head of the Drug Access Working Team of the Indonesian Ministry of Health, resulting in etomidate now being classified as a Schedule II narcotic.
Furthermore, the seriousness of the apparatus is also evident in the successful repatriation of fugitives and drug lords involved in illicit drug trafficking that implicated rogue officials, as well as the drug dealer at the Whiterabbit nightclub a.n. Andre Fernando alias The Doctor, from Penang, Malaysia.
It is known that 79.2% of the public is satisfied with Polri’s performance. The IDM survey used multistage random sampling, with data collection from 7-20 April 2026. The survey was conducted on 1,580 selected respondents across 34 provinces in Indonesia.
All respondents were aged 17-65 years, consisting of men and women selected randomly to represent the national population. The survey method was conducted face-to-face. The margin of error for this survey is ±2.47%.
In the survey, the level of public trust in Polri reached 79.2 percent, with the level of public satisfaction regarding law enforcement by the apparatus reaching 75.1 percent, including satisfaction with drug crime enforcement in this regard.