Chairman, National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, (NDLEA) Gen. Buba Marwa has drawn public attention to the relationship between drug abuse and unending insecurity in Nigeria.

Gen. Marwa made this known yesterday as guest speaker at the 2021 Ulefunta annual public lecture, organised by the Deji of Akure kingdom, Ondo State and organised by His Imperial Majesty, Oba Aladetoyinbo Ogunlade Aladelusi.

The NDLEA boss said the proliferation of illicit drugs in any society often engenders a pattern of crime, chaos and conflict. He also noted that unconrolled access to narcotic drugs is the driver of high crime rate and homicide cases in advanced countries. 

He noted that illicit drug use is the highest escalator of strife, pogroms and civil wars in developing or Third World countries. He used examples of Syria, which has become the hotbed of Captagon, and Afghanistan, the world opium headquarters.

"We have seen narco-terrorism in countries like Colombia and Mexico, where drug cartels are law unto themselves and are as powerful, if not more powerful, than the State. So, there are real cases, not scenarios, of where and how illicit substances played a role in a society's rapid descent into chaos and tettering on the brink of a failed state.

General Marwa also stated that the obvious links between Nigeria's current insecurity and the escalation of drug abuse, especially in conflict prone areas is too conspicuous to be ignored.

"We do not have the luxury of allowing a narcotic economy to take root and thrive in our society. Africa, nay, Nigeria has enough problems without adding the burden of narco-terrorism. Of all the known illicit substances, Cannabis sativa is the only one that is native to Nigeria and it is the most abused of all illicit drugs, and from the findings of the National drug Survey of 2018, cannabis is becoming a national albatross".

The NDLEA boss stated that the population of Nigerians hooked on cannabis alone is more than the population of countries like Portugal, Greece or the Republic of Benan. He questioned the rationale behind legalising marijuana when all the needed infrastructure to monitoring and control are still far from being in place.

"Where cannabis is concerned, we should not by any argument allow ourselves to become the proverbial fool that rushed in where angels fear to tread. Countries like Canada, that are pro-cannabis have strong and efficient institutions that are way ahead of ours by long mileages. 

“Given the reality of our law enforcement, controlled cultivation of cannabis is a mirage. Arent pharmaceutical opioids controlled? Tramadol, codeine, rohypnol, benzopam, they are all controlled, yet, their trafficking and abuse is causing us unquantifiable human and economic loss. 

"And for those who point at the inherent economic benefit that could accrue from legalisation of cultivation, in accordance with our reality, would you be comfortable, if by tomorrow, your 13-year-old son can easily access marijuana, or you find some wraps of weed in his pocket, or you learnt that someone has introduced your 16-year-old daughter to smoking Igbo under the pretext that it has medicinal value? 

"Our individual answer to that question will give us a public opinion of where we should stand as a country in the cannabis debate".

"As far as NDLEA is concerned, cannabis remains an illicit substance. The Agency shall always canvass against its cultivation, possession, trafficking and sales, and use".

The event had government officials and captains of various industries on attendance. Former Secretary to the Federal Government, Chief Olu Falae was Chairman of occasion. 

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