The House of Representatives has requested President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to declare an emergency due to the country’s drug usage.
Additionally, they demanded the creation of preventive methods in the form of an education campaign against drug misuse and its effects, and they gave the National Orientation Agency (NOA) the go-ahead to create certain awareness campaign programs against drug abuse throughout the nation.
The House also requested that the government boost the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency’s (Agency) budgetary allotment and assure that the agency receives its financing directly from the presidency, as it did when it was founded in 1989.
Moving the motion, Agbo remarked that there was an intrinsic relationship between the extent of narcotic drug addiction and the frequency and seriousness of crimes in every culture, including Nigeria, and emphasized that it was not surprising that individuals arrested for various crimes were drug users and traffickers.
“Drug abuse and addiction incidents know no age limit,” he declared. Mr. Speaker, Honorable Colleagues, the use of illegal drugs has become so pervasive in Nigerian society that young people as young as 15 are now using them heavily. Narcotics will ruin the youths who we refer to as the leaders of tomorrow, endangering the future of this great country.
“The upsurge in illicit drug abuse has created an underground economy where crimes flourish as opportunity criminals now battle for turf and proceeds while at the same time, exploiting and corrupting the legitimate business environment of the country.
“This is antithetical to the corporate image of Nigeria as no country wants its economy to be influenced by the drug barons.
“It is as a result of the danger of narcotic drug addiction poses to our collective well-being as a people that President Drug Abuse chaired by a former Military Administrator of Lagos State, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (Rtd).
“But it stopped at that so far, government at all levels, and particularly the Federal Government has continued to pay lip service to the war against illicit drug abuse as NDLEA, the agency statutorily set up to wage war against the narcotic industry remains underfunded, understaffed and ill-equipped.
“It is against this background, that the NDLEA remains a toothless bulldog! The implication of this is that, while narcotic drug abuse progresses at a geometric progression, the war against it progresses at an arithmetic progression!
“Cannabis described by the World Health Organisation as the most abused drug globally, is the commonly used hard drug in Nigeria that can be found virtually everywhere in the country;
“The growing trend abuse of synthetic and designer drugs by Nigerians coupled with the increase in the number of Household items and other easily-accessible narcotizing agents like amphetamine, methamphetamine, cocaine, heroin, plant thinner, glue, codeine-laced cough syrup, cement, and animal excreta which are widely abused in Nigeria.
“The tragic phenomenon now affects all strata and demographic groups of our Nigeria society, it is pertinent governments at all levels, the organized private sector and the family unit work closely to combat this menace, for if we fail to destroy narcotic drug addiction as a country, it will destroy Nigeria!”
The House adopted the motion and instructed its Committees on Narcotic Drugs and Health Care Services to oversee the resolution’s implementation and submit a report within six months for additional legislative action.
