The Philippine police chief says his force will resume visits to the homes of drug suspects to encourage them to reform, despite his acknowledgement that corrupt police have abused the program.

National Police Director-General Ronald dela Rosa said Monday that there will be stricter safeguards on the visits and he pledged that the president's overall anti-drug crackdown will be "less bloody."

Dela Rosa said 352 police have been removed from their posts, nearly half of them for drug-related offenses, and 329 others were being investigated in a program to cleanse the force of misfits.

President Rodrigo Duterte ordered the national police to desist from involvement in his crackdown on illegal drugs twice last year due to reported abuses by law enforcers. He later allowed them back in drug raids.