The Chairman/Chief Executive of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Brigadier-General Buba Marwa, on Monday condemned the move to legalise Cannabis Sativa in Nigeria.

He called on all well-meaning individuals to resist such an attempt by some public office holders, saying it would frustrate the war against drug abuse in the country.

“With over 8, 634 arrests; 2,776,000 kilogrammes of drugs worth over N100 billion seized; 1,630 convictions; 3,232 cases in court, and over 4,000 drug users counselled and rehabilitated between January and now, we are already making substantial progress in our drug supply reduction and drug demand reduction efforts,” he was quoted as saying in a statement by the agency’s spokesman, Femi Babafemi.

Marwa, who spoke when he visited Governor Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano State, added, “We are, however, convinced that the ongoing attempts by some of our elected officials to legalise Cannabis which is being abused by over 10.6 million Nigerians will be a drawback for the achievements so far.

“This is why I want to implore Your Excellency and Kano State not to support the attempt to legalise Cannabis.”

The NDLEA chief, who led top officials of the agency on a War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) advocacy visit to Kano, urged the governor not to support any bid by some elected officials to legalise Cannabis Sativa.

NDLEA chief, Brigadier-General Buba Marwa, presents a souvenir to Governor Abdullahi Ganduje during a visit to the Kano State Government House on August 30, 2021.

According to him, the NDLEA is doing so much to cut availability and accessibility to illicit drugs across Nigeria and that any attempt to legalise the illicit substance will be a setback to the progress made so far.

Marwa warned landlords to ensure that they do not accommodate drug traffickers in their houses, as the NDLEA would not hesitate to seek forfeiture of any property used to store illicit drugs when offenders are caught.

He asked Governor Ganduje to support the NDLEA with 25 hectares of land to build barracks in the state and a property that would house a zonal command office in Kano.

The anti-drug agency chief commended his host for making drug test a prerequisite for public officials and those aspiring into public office in the state.

In his response, Governor Ganduje declared his opposition to any attempt to legalise Cannabis Sativa in the country even.

For the governor, no lawmaker from the state will support such a bid in the National Assembly and the fight against drug abuse is key to winning the battle against insecurity in the country.

He granted the requests for land and accommodation for a zonal command and assured his guest that the Kano State government would always discourage drug abuse and trafficking.

[TNG]