Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of the agency, Brig. Gen. Mohammed Buba Marwa (rtd), disclosed this, yesterday, while addressing commanders, officers and men of the agency during an awards and commendations ceremony at the national headquarters in Abuja.
The event featured recognition and presentation of awards to 104 personnel and 13 commands for outstanding performances in the second half of 2023.
According to Marwa, the recipients should be appreciated for every effort made to sustain the momentum of NDLEA’s upward trajectory since January 2021, when the renewed fight against illicit substance trafficking was launched.
He said: “According to our statistics, we recorded 13, 664 arrests, leading to the seizure of 1,606,799.09kg of assorted illicit drugs and 3,412 convictions, with 5,570 offenders charged to court in 2023. It was indeed a year that, at least, 15 drug kingpins bagged 168 years of imprisonment collectively.
“That is a substantial improvement over our performance in 2022. Notably, in 2023, we also ramped up our enforcement action against cannabis farms and carried out, at least, seven successful major operations, leading to the discovery and destruction of over 206 hectares of cannabis plantations.”
The NDLEA boss said to create awareness about the dangers of substance abuse and encourage affected people to seek treatment, the agency intensified its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) advocacy initiative nationwide.
He noted: “The frequency and intensity of our advocacy throughout the year improved considerably. Zonal and state commands have been very dedicated to propagating WADA advocacy. As a result, 2,725 sensitisation lectures and programmes were held in schools, worship centres, workplaces and communities.”
Marwa said those who have been in the agency longer than 2021 can attest to the fact that the past three years have brought different dynamics to operations and performance; a development that has attracted commendations from home and abroad.
He assured that he will not relent in his effort to improve the welfare of the NDLEA workforce.
