The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has disclosed that it has arrested 91,148 drug-related offenders and seized more than 16 million kilogrammes of assorted illicit substances since Brigadier-General Buba Marwa (retd.) assumed office as chairman of the agency in January 2021.
The agency also said it had destroyed more than 2,075 hectares of cannabis plantations during the period, while intensifying efforts to dismantle international drug trafficking networks and target the financial structures sustaining the illicit trade.
The NDLEA Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, disclosed this on Thursday during an interview on Frontline, a current affairs programme on Eagle 102.5 FM, Ilese-Ijebu, Ogun State.
Babafemi said the agency’s operations had gone beyond the arrest of street-level traffickers and seizure of illicit substances to targeting financiers, enablers, barons and cartels behind the drug trade.
He said the agency was working with international partners, including the United States Drug Enforcement Administration, the United Kingdom’s National Crime Agency and Border Force, as well as drug enforcement authorities in Ghana, Saudi Arabia, Brazil, Germany, Switzerland and other countries.
According to him, the growing international collaboration had made it increasingly difficult for drug traffickers who flee Nigeria to evade arrest.
“The world is global now and the NDLEA is not just the NDLEA of Nigeria alone. Now we have great networks with our counterparts across the world,” Babafemi said.
He added that recent joint operations had demonstrated that traffickers could no longer rely on leaving Nigeria to escape the reach of law enforcement.
Babafemi said the agency was also targeting properties and other assets acquired through proceeds of drug trafficking, including mansions, luxury vehicles, hotels and bank accounts.
He cited the arrest of a Nigerian drug baron, Amadi Simon, who was apprehended in Switzerland after a two-year investigation involving the NDLEA and its counterparts in the United States, Switzerland, France and Greece.
According to him, two female associates of Simon were also arrested in Anambra and Delta states, while three hotels linked to the network had been taken over and their bank accounts frozen.
“We had around May, the arrest of a billionaire drug baron, Amadi Simon, who was a Nigerian and was hibernating in Switzerland,” he said.
The NDLEA spokesman said the agency had also dismantled a major drug trafficking route linking Togo, Benin Republic and Nigeria, which he described as a major channel through which opioids had entered the country.
He said nearly two million tablets of tramadol were seized in July during an operation along the corridor, with the suspects arrested in connection with the consignment subsequently convicted and sentenced.
Babafemi added that the trucks and long trailers used to transport the drugs were forfeited to the Federal Government.
He said the agency’s operations had also extended to the treatment and rehabilitation of people struggling with substance abuse.
According to him, the NDLEA currently operates 31 rehabilitation centres across the country, including one in Ogun State, with plans to establish an additional six or seven centres.
Babafemi disclosed that more than 53,000 people had been treated and rehabilitated through the agency’s rehabilitation facilities.
He also announced that the NDLEA operates a toll-free Drug Abuse Call Centre, where people battling substance abuse can access counsellors, clinical psychologists, psychotherapists and psychiatric doctors.
He gave the toll-free number as 0800-1020-3040, saying the service operates round the clock and provides teletherapy and psychosocial support.
He said the service was available in English, Pidgin English, Hausa, Yoruba and Igbo, adding that people who required physical treatment would be referred to appropriate public, private or tertiary healthcare facilities.
Babafemi further disclosed that the agency was working with the Federal Government to remove the option of fine for convicted drug offenders.
He said the proposed amendment to the NDLEA’s enabling law was being pursued through the Office of the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice and would eventually be forwarded to the National Assembly.
According to him, allowing convicted drug offenders to pay fines could weaken the deterrent effect of prosecution, particularly where wealthy offenders could afford the financial penalty.
The NDLEA spokesman also rejected calls for the legalisation of cannabis for medicinal, commercial or revenue purposes, maintaining that cannabis remained a major public health and security concern.
He said the agency had engaged the Nigerian Academy of Science on the issue and relied on scientific evidence in forming its position.
Babafemi said the 2018 National Drug Use Survey identified cannabis as the most commonly abused illicit substance in Nigeria, adding that about 10.3 million of the 14.3 million Nigerians aged 15 to 64 who had used illicit substances were reported to have abused cannabis.
He also linked drug abuse and trafficking to some of the security challenges confronting the country.
Citing the recent seizure of Captagon at the Lagos airport, he warned that emerging drug trafficking trends posed serious security risks.
Babafemi said the first seizure of Captagon in Nigeria occurred in 2021, while another consignment was intercepted at the Lagos airport shortly before the interview.
He alleged that proceeds from the sale of the drug could be used to finance the acquisition of arms and ammunition, while its consumption could induce prolonged wakefulness and violent behaviour.
The NDLEA spokesman urged parents and community leaders to take greater responsibility in preventing drug abuse, stressing that the fight against illicit drugs must begin at home.
He advised parents to pay attention to changes in their children’s behaviour, friendships, eating and sleeping patterns, as well as the contents of their bags and personal belongings.
Babafemi said the agency had drug testing kits available at its commands across the country for people who suspect that their children or wards might be abusing substances.
He maintained that the NDLEA was making progress in the fight against illicit drugs, although more work remained to be done.
“Definitely we’re winning. We may not have been where we want to be, but then we’re definitely getting to where we hope to be,” he said.
