PCC Pills Banned Long Time Ago

ANTARA/ Jojon

A patient lies unconscious in an isolation room at Kendari Hospital for the Mentally Ill in Kendari, Southeast Sulawesi, on Thursday (14/9). Sixty people from the area have consumed excessive amounts of Somadril and Tramadol pain relief medication; three have died while 57 others are still being treated for drug-induced unconsciousness.

MAKASSAR, KOMPAS – Pills called PCC (paracetamol, caffeine, carisoprodol) that have landed dozens of teenagers in Kendari, Southeast Sulawesi, in hospital, contained carisoprodol, a drug that has been banned since 2013.

According to findings by health authorities of Southeast Sulawesi and the Food and Drug Supervisory Agency (BPOM), some PCCs were also mixed with tramadol.

"This drug is banned, because it has been widely misused. In the sample we studied, some pills contained or were mixed with tramadol, which is used as a pain reliever. With excessive consumption, users can behave like crazy and experience hallucination, "said the head of the Southeast Sulawesi health office, Asrun Tombili, in Kendari Friday.

In Jakarta, the head of supervision of therapeutic product distribution at the BPOM, Hans Kakerissa, said the PCC pills taken by teenagers in Kendari were illegal. The product was withdrawn from circulation in 2013.

Laboratory tests showed that the PCC tablets contain carisoprodol, which isused medically as a muscle relaxant or pain reliever. The pills are often misused to boost self-confidence or enhance stamina, and have even been used by commercial sex workers as "sexual stimulant pills."

Hans said that BPOM was investigating the origin of the PCC pills circulating in Kendari. The pills are believed to be produced by illegal drug networks that distribute the pills in a number of areas.

Based on data from the Southeast SulawesiPolice, as of Friday, the number of victims from abuse of the drug has reached 66 people. Fifteen of them are being treated in the hospital. Three people are dead, but police could only confirm that one of them had died after taking the pills.

"With two victims who jumped into the sea it cannot be confirmed that they died due to the drug, because they were found drowned. Although family members and witnesses said the drug effect might have caused them to plunge into the sea, we must confirm (it) through an autopsy. However, the families refused," said Southeast SulawesiPolice head of public relations Adjunct Commissioner Sunarto.

Finding the motive

The provincial government of Southeast Sulawesi and the local health office have urged relevant authorities to thoroughly investigate the motive behind the circulation of drugs carried out simultaneously in a number of areas. The pills were handed out to teenagers ranging from elementary school students to high school students.

Asrun revealed that during the investigation some of the victims had said they had taken eight pills each.

The head of the Southeast Sulawesi Information and Communications Office, Kusnadi, said the local government was very concerned about the incident. "We are working with the municipal and district governments, the BPOM and relevant agencies to tighten the supervision of pharmacies and places suspected of being used to sell the drug," said Kusnadi.

Currently, police are still investigating the motive behind the distribution of the drug. As of Friday, nine suspects have been arrested, two of whom are pharmacists or pharmacist assistants, the head of public information of the Police Public Relations Division, Martinus Sitompul, said in Jakarta.

Cases of PCC drug distribution and abuse have spread in Kendari and the surrounding areas since Tuesday (12/9). Dozens of residents, mostly children and adolescents, were rushed to hospitals with symptoms of hallucination, hyperactivity, moodiness, unconsciousness or irrational behavior.

Warning

Senior government officials in Banten have warned the people not to take the PCC pills. Among of them is Banten Governor Wahidin Halim, who warned the people to stay away from the illegal drug after the inauguration of Bank Indonesia’s representative office in Serang on Friday.

Meanwhile, the West Java Police narcotics unit discovered the circulation of narcotics of the shabu-shabu type (crystal methamphetamine) in the Bandung Raya area, allegedly by an Aceh-based drug network.

Police seized potential evidences in the form of shabu-shabu weighing 4.1 kilograms worth Rp 6 billion. Seven suspects ranging in age from 32 to 48 have been arrested. Police are looking for one more person.

(REN/ADH/DD14/SEM/BAY/RAZ)