“In one year, we successfully removed three-point-three tons of illicit drugs from circulation in Anambra State but this success cannot be sustained without the support and co-operation of community leaders and stakeholders.”

 

This is according to the Anambra state commander of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, Anambra State Command, Mr. Daniel Onyishi while calling for the cooperation of community leaders to end the menace of trafficking in illicit drugs in the state.

Mr. Onyishi, who was speaking when he led a delegation of the management staff of the command to pay a courtesy visit to the traditional ruler of Awka, Obi Gibson Nwosu, asked community, religious, political and opinion leaders not to see illicit drugs trafficking as a business but as a crime that destroys communities and societies.

 

He emphasized that all hands must be on deck to ensure that the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crimes, UNODC’s prediction that twenty million Nigerians will become chronic drug users by 2030 does not come to pass.

The NDLEA boss reassured of the commitment of the agency under its Chairman and Chief Executive, Retired Brigadier General Buba Marwa to stifle the supply of dangerous drugs such as crystal methamphetamine across the country.

 

Responding, Obi Nwosu pledged the support of the community to help the agency eradicate illicit drug abuse and peddling from the capital city, and expressed worry that if treated with kid gloves; it will contribute to the festering of other forms of crimes in the city.

On their parts, the traditional prime minister of Awka, Chief Benjamin Okoye, and the Youth Leader of the community, Mr. Ikechukwu Ezenwa commended the NDLEA for their efforts so far in taking illicit drugs out of circulation in the state, and stated that the fight against drug trafficking in the capital city must be innovative and cooperative, given the diverse and dynamic population makeup of the city.

Exchange of souvenirs between the Awka monarch, Obi Nwosu and the NDLEA boss, Mr. Onyishi, were highpoints of the visit witnessed the members of the Eze Ụzụ-in-council, Kingmakers of the community and Ndi Ada Eze Ụzụ.