Pubdate: Fri, 06 Jun 2008 Source: Leadership Nigeria (Nigeria) Copyright: 2008 Leadership Newspapers Group Limited Contact: http://www.leadershipnigeria.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/4706 Author: Joshua Ojo Uma NDLEA AND FIGHT AGAINST DRUGS The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) which was established to combat drug trafficking and abuse, has through the years put in relentless efforts at ensuring that the Nigerian ports and other various points in which illicit drugs are smuggled in and out of the country are secured. An effort which have paid of and received wider acceptance and acknowledgement by the International Community, thereby creating awareness for partnership with similar agencies abroad. The most recent and fruitful being the partnership between the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) and the United States government through its ambassador to Nigeria, Mrs. Robin Sanders. The American envoy on behalf of her government donated a full body scanning machine to be stationed at the international wing of all the International airports in Lagos, Kano, Abuja and Port Harcourt, along with security training and orientation for the officers at the various airport commands. The equipments and skills acquired by officers of the Agency through the training and orientation played major roles in the outstanding drug seizures and arrests of drug traffickers and the cracking down on drug cartel and net work. Worth mentioning is that within seven days that a body scanning machine was commissioned at the Nnamdi Azikiwe Internaional Airport (NAIA) command of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), five suspected drug trafffickers were being detected by the machine for attempting to smuggle narcotics through the airport. The five suspects were nabbed during the outward scanning of passenger on KLM flight on April 13, 2008. The Abuja Airport commander of the agency, Alhaji Hamza Umar, while commenting on the command's scorecard in the first quarter of the year disclosed that, more drug traffickers will be arrested with the aid of the body scanning machine. "The first screening we carried out with the body scanner resulted in the arrest of five suspected drug traffickers in a single flight", Alhaji Hamza said. Which is a clear signal that whoever carries drug to this airport is only presenting him or herself for arrest and prosecution. Lamentable is the involvement of healthy young men and women in the ignorable trade. The suspects arrested at the Nnamdi Azikiwe Internatioinal Airport (NAIA) as observed by the airport commander are between the ages of 29 and 46 years, which happens to be the prime age for productivity. In his words, "The ugly trend where young people engage in drug trafficking rather than being gainfully employed calls for serious concern". In line with this call, the United States government also believing that drug trafficking and abuse is a global menace which requires global approach, has resolved to spread its tentacles in the fight by partnering with other nations like Nigeria. A partnership which have been quite fruitful, going by the number of arrests so far and the quantity of drugs seizure, instrumental by the equipment and human resource development provided by the US government. The glummy portrait painted by drug trafficker and other related offences to the international community, tends to sabotage the good fight of the Agency. Recently, the honourable chairman/chief executive of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Alhaji Ahmadu Giade, while responding to the arrest of six suspected Nigerian drug traffickers livnig in other countries in the month of April, 2008 in Lagos, urged Nigerians to always protect and promote the image of the country by avoiding drug trafficking and other criminal acts. According to Giade, "Every Nigerian must assume the status of an ambassador and be gainfully excited in projecting the country in good light at all time", he said. The arrested suspects includes Izeagba Donatus Okwuchukwu, 43-year-old was arrested during routine check on passengers on KLM flight from Lagos to Amsterdam, ingested 98 wraps of narcotics. Egharevba Collins, 30 years old, who lives in Madrid, Spain, ingested 68 wraps of cocaine weighing 1.138kg. Andrew Okey Eze, 36 years old, who lives in Toronto, Italy was found to have ingested 95 wraps of cocaine on his way to Milan. Others were Maduka Sunday Chinedu, 35 years old, who lives in Cotonou found to have ingested 84 wraps of cocaine on his way to Germany. Nwogu Whiteman Gibson, a 48 years old father of three, lives in Bassano, Italy, ingested 93 wraps of cocaine weighing 1.568kg,and Alugwo Kingsley Uka, 33 years, who was arrested on his way to Belgium with 73 wraps of hard drugs in his stomach. The Agency has taken the war against drug trafficker further, when it enjoined courier houses to prevent the use of their organisations in illicit drug trafficking, by collaborating with the Agency in the control of illegal trafficking. The call for the collaboration came towards the end of April, during a workshop on operator-government agency interface in courier business in Lagos. The Agency through its director-general/secretary, Otunba Lanre Ipinmisho, stated that "Courier companies are expected by law to take reasonable precaution in the cause of their operation to check obnoxious drug trade". Furthermore, Ipinmisho cited section 16 of the NDLEA Act, which stipulates that it shall be a duty of every commercial carrier to take reasonable precaution to ensure that its means of transport are not used in the commission of drug offences under the Act. Such precaution as referred to by the Act include; training of personnel to identity suspicious consignment and persons, promotion of the integrity of their personnel, submission of cargo manifest in advance to the agency. Use of taper resistant individually veritable seals on parcels/containers and reporting to the Agency all suspicious circumstances at the earliest opportunity. In addition, the courier houses are expected to comply with appropriate security measures to prevent unauthorised cargo in its means of transportation. The need to establish a cordial relationship between courier houses and the Agency in the control for drug trafficking was also emphasised by the director/secretary of the Agency. According to him, "the need has become imperative due to the fact that drug barons have diversified their subterfuge by the use of courier houses". A reason why the NDLEA in 1996 under its Directorate of Investigation created a specialised unit called the Postal Intelligence Assignment which is known as Special Intelliegence Assignment (SIA) to check drug trafficking at the courier houses. The SIA since its establishment has made several seizure of drugs and arrests of suspected drug traffickers. Just in January 2008, the unit intercepted two kilogrammes of cannabis originating from Abia State, meant for delivery in Kuaala Lumpur in Malaysia. Similarly, 500 grammes of cocaine concealed in cell phone charges were also discovered in 2007. Notably, the agency's watchfulness between 2007 to date, has led to the seizure of a total of 3.684kg of cocaine, 25.8kg of cannabis and 20kg of psychotropic substances that were smuggled through the courier houses. Some modes of concealment uncovered in the process include hard cover books, picture frames, photo albums, sculptures, computer components, electronics spare parts and textile materials, etc. Though the Agency has shown great courage and determination in its fight against drug trafficking and abuse between 2006 till date, in which over 12,663 suspected drug dealers were arrested and resulted in the seizures of over 418.8 metric tonnes of various hard drug. The agency still have to fasten its belt and take this campaign against narcotics to the public down to the grassroots, incorporating enlightenment programmes into their scheme to cover schools both at the primary, secondary and higher institutions. - --- MAP posted-by: Larry Seguin