THE National Drugs Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has destroyed illicit drugs and psychoactive substances valued at over N50 billion in the Nigerian capital, Abuja.
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA Mohammed Buba Marwa, during the destruction, disclosed that said the agency was determined more than ever to halt the trends of drug trafficking and abuse in Nigeria’s capital, Abuja.
The NDLEA boss, who was represented at the event by the secretary of the agency Shadrach Haruna, spoke during the destruction of 20,000kg of assorted illicit drugs valued at N50bn.
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The drugs were seized at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport Command of the NDLEA.
“Our performance so far justifies our change of strategy. Between January and November, we mopped up over three million kilogrammes of illicit drugs and psychoactive substances in the country. We arrested 10,355 traffickers, with at least 1,000 in jail, while others are going through trials in court.”
He cited statistics from the National Drug Use Survey (2018) which showed that 10.6 million people abused cannabis, making Nigeria the country with the highest number of people addicted to the psychotropic plant.
In an interview with journalists, Shadrach, a lawyer, also said the agency would continue to work assiduously with informants and civil society organisations in the eastern part of the country to seek out and destroy hidden laboratories used in producing methamphetamine, a growing challenge for the agency.
Also speaking, the FCT commander of the NDLEA Mohammed Malami Sokoto said new policies instituted by the chairman of the agency would end the menace of drug activities in the city.
Blessing Otoibhi is a Multimedia Journalist and Anchor host for the News in 60 seconds at The International Center For Investigative Reporting. You can shoot her a mail via Botoibhi@icirnigeria.org or connect on Twitter @B_otoibhi