Marwa Insists Drug Law Enforcement Must Keep Up With Dynamics Of Crime

Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (rtd), Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NDLEA, has stated that the illicit drug landscape was rapidly changing, and modern drug law enforcement needed to keep up with the dynamic.

He delivered the verdict at a journalist training session organised by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crimes (UNODC) and the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) to increase the fight against drug trafficking and wildlife crimes in Nigeria.

Marwa stated that the media, as a critical partner, must be well-informed about these shifting trends.

Marwa stated at the training, which was organised by the two agencies in collaboration with the MacArthur Foundation, that “there have been recent calls for training of journalists in various activities aimed at combating the abuse and trafficking of illicit substances.

“This also implies that such training should not only strengthen the capacity of anti-drug organisations. It should also reform its systems and processes, instilling the essence of best practices.

He stated: “At NDLEA, we yearn for training, and UNODC has been forthcoming, providing various capacity development training over the last three years.”

While emphasising the importance of journalists understanding key issues of public impact and reporting them in the proper context for data interpretation, UNODC Country Representative Oliver Stolpe stated that data is critical to understanding the prevalence and frequency of scientific issues of concern.

Stolpe, while lamenting the impact of organised wildlife crime, said, “I would like to draw your attention to a much less cited study on cannabis cultivation in Nigeria. It covered six states, was published about two years ago, and established, among other things, that there is a direct link between deforestation and drug cultivation.

“We need to improve our reporting on wildlife and forest crime. I am very pleased to see so much interest in the subject.

“This is a critical issue for Nigeria. It is a much larger challenge than I believe we were aware of, even a few years ago when no one was talking about wildlife and forest crime.

Stolpe stated that UNODC’s primary collaboration with the media has been to ensure effective information dissemination through meaningful press releases, interviews, and other media events.

He stated, “We have always made it clear that we distinguish between drug trafficking crimes and the issue of drug use, which we consider to be primarily a health issue and should be addressed as such.

“Addiction is a medical condition; it is not an option. As a result, people who are addicted to drugs may have them.

“They should be treated primarily as patients, with access to the treatment and counselling services they require to overcome their respective drug use condition,” he stated.