UN drug report, a reason to unite against cartels in Nigeria

By Adekunbi Lawal

It is a known fact that drug trafficking and abuse are at a level that calls for all to roll up our sleeves and join the ongoing effort to wrestle the scourge to the ground in Nigeria. A new report by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) corroborated this fact in its recent report that the “Nigerian market tops the list of cocaine smuggling regions in Africa.”

That raises a critical question: “Is there no one checking drug barons for them to have gained ground in Nigeria with their illicit business?” This is where the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, comes in, the body charged with the arrest and prosecution of drug offenders.

From all indications, NDLEA has been up and doing. Nigerians still remember the largest cocaine seizure in the history of the country which was pulled off last year in Ikorodu, Lagos, by the agency. Just a week before the governorship and state Assembly elections, operatives of NDLEA arrested 100 drug dealers of illicit substances, mostly marijuana and crystal methamphetamine, at Akala, Mushin area of Lagos State. Discerning citizens can easily connect the dots that the mop-up operations prevented drug-fuelled violence during the polls. Generally, statistics from NDLEA give a good picture of effective drug law enforcement. For instance, the Agency in its report said it has in the past 24 months made 26, 450 arrests, recorded 3, 733 convictions and seized 5,730 tons of illicit substances. There is hardly any week that drug offenders are not apprehended by officers of the agency.

Therefore, beyond any doubt, the country has an effective anti-narcotic agency that all Nigerians must be proud of. It is an understatement to say that NDLEA is doing a fantastic job at the moment. It is hoped that the agency will sustain the tempo.

Having said that, we have to also ask this blunt question: Why are there continuous arrests and seizures, despite the unflagging and fruitful efforts of NDLEA?

That tells us that there is a need for other components of society to join hands with NDLEA to safeguard our society from the scourge of illicit drugs.

Society has a part to play by volunteering information to NDLEA on anyone suspected to be dealing in illicit substances. The media needs to keep the illicit drug issue on the front burner to impress the citizens about the urgency and imperative of collaborating with NDLEA to stamp out this menace. Other relevant agencies will have to continue with NDLEA in partnership to make the country unbearable for drug barons and transnational criminal organisations.

Religious leaders, community leaders and family heads too also have to play their part by ensuring that their members stay away from illicit drugs.

As a society, if we can have this unity of purpose, we will be giving the NDLEA the needed fillip in its war against illicit drug merchants.

• Adekunbi Lawal writes from Jabi, Abuja.