Insecurity and hard drugs interlinked, says NDLEA Boss, Caution NASS Against Legalizing Cannabis
The Director-General of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, Buba Marwa drew a link between the use of hard drugs and insurgency.
He, therefore, called on the National Assembly to halt the move on the legalization of cannabis. “Insecurity is clearly one of the key challenges, if not the most important challenge at the moment facing us as a nation today.
It needs all institutions and all Nigerians to stand up to the occasion and not to leave everything to the security agencies alone. Security is everybody’s business.
“I must take this opportunity to state very clearly, that, there is incontrovertible evidence of a linkage, between drug use and a spate of insecurity.
Drugs are a clear propellant to insurgency, banditry, kidnapping, ESN and other criminal activities. “We know, that drug money funds their activities. We have arrested quite a few on their way to supply drugs to the insurgents.
Since January, the NDLEA has seized over 2000 tonnes and over N90 billion worth of drugs. Consider what a fraction of that will do in support of criminal activities. “Equally, the bandits, insurgents, and other criminals use drugs before launching their nefarious missions.
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History bailed us out. It is not something that started in Nigeria. The service chiefs, His Eminence the Sultan refers to long years of service under his belt in the armed forces. “And indeed, all students of military history will remember that, in the initial stages of World War 2, Nazi Germany’s military offensive against Chzechlovakia in 1938, against Poland in 1939, the conquest of the lower countries in the early 40s, and the invasion of France, the armed forces and the crewmen were actually issued Methamphetamine, they were issued drugs as an official military issue to propel their advance. “And so, you had soldiers of Germany who were chemically enhanced, fearless, tireless and went on for days without sleeping.
This is what we are facing in Nigeria today. “The insurgents, the bandits, these people kidnapping hundreds of school children, all of them are working under the influence of drugs. “We know from our colleagues in the armed forces when they secure a camp from Boko Haram, there are remnants of drugs everywhere.
“The insurgents have been asked. What is their worrisome fear in their operations? And they have not said, their fear is running out of ammunition, or running out of food or weapons. Their greatest fear as they always say is running out of drugs.
“Today, over 10 million Nigerians use Cannabis. That is Marijuana. Most of it smoke, pepper soups, and other stuff. I didn’t make this up. This was from the UNODC survey.
“With this, Nigeria should be in my opinion, the last country facing its security challenges to contemplate a law to legalise Cannabis. If we legalise Cannabis in any way, shape, or form, we will soon turn into a nation of junkies and criminals.
“It is very clear, that, this has to come out of my mouth as the head of the Drug Law Enforcement Agency of Nigeria. So, while commending this summit, the Honourable Speaker, please, I will like to draw your attention, that if we are doing a summit on security, we could not at the same time decide to legalise one of the impetus for insecurity, which is drugs.
It is like we are taking one step forward and two steps backward”, he said. The summit which is holding at the Muhammadu Buhari hall in the premises of the National Intelligence Agency, NIA, Abuja continues for the next two days behind closed doors.
