The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Apapa Command, announced that 14 containers of illicit drugs have been seized in one year.
According to NDLEA, the development has disrupted the distribution cycle of illicit drugs through Nigeria’s seaports.
The Assistant Commander General of Narcotics, Buba Wakawa (ACGN), disclosed this on Thursday during the joint grand finale organised by the Apapa and Tin-Can Strategic Seaport Commands of the NDLEA.
Wakawa reportedly revealed that among the notable seizures were 744,635 bottles of codeine-based syrups and 36,652,460 tablets of Tramadol, with a combined weight of 131,920.7 kilograms.
According to Nairametrics, he emphasised that the cycle of drug abuse and trafficking can be broken, adding that collective action is key to making it happen.
Wakawa stated that the agency faces a common enemy in drug dealers and peddlers, who are always willing to break the law for profit, foster insecurity, and endanger the nation’s health.
“We must secure the process from unscrupulous elements, turning it into a haven for illicit drug trade,” he warned.
Wakawa further lamented that psychotropic substances such as Tramadol and codeine-based cough syrups, originally developed for medical treatment, have now been misused as recreational drugs.
“These substances are now abused to get high, enhance performance, and seek social pleasure without any medical justification. We will not tolerate this in our maritime corridors,” he said.
Wakawa added that the 2018 UN Drugs Survey estimated that 14.3 million Nigerians between the ages of 15 to 64 had used drugs in the preceding years.
He stressed that the theme for the year was apt and consistent with its War Against Drug Abuse (WADA), a novel idea and brainchild of its visionary leader, the Chairman, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa.
