By Mahmud Isa Yola
Attention:
- All Drug Procurement Syndicates
- All Drug Courier Syndicates
- All Drug Distribution Syndicates
- All Local Drug Merchandising Syndicates
- All Members of Drug Cartels Operating in Nigeria
I felt compelled to write to apprise you of the exponential and steady spike in the number of people arrested for drug trafficking-related offences; the rising frequency of illicit drug seizures across the country, which I am sure you are finding difficult to comprehend; and the renewed anti-drug effort in Nigeria, which has already had a bloody impact on the Nigerian illicit drug trade.
I'm sure the shocking news of DCP Abba Kyari's arrest has sent drug dealers across the country into trepidation. Abba Kyari's arrest by the police and subsequent handover to the NDLEA for questioning on his alleged role in a Cocaine trafficking ring, speaks volumes about Nigeria's determination to prosecute anyone involved in illegal drug trafficking.
This is, without doubt, a critical time in the business of peddling illegal drugs in Nigeria. Cocaine, crack, heroin, morphine, and other associated illicit narcotics that formerly littered the Nigerian streets are suddenly becoming scarce due to a sharp decline in supply.
This development, without question, poses a deadly threat to the entire structure of the country's illicit drug trade. The NDLEA's constant destruction of cannabis farms has undoubtedly decreased consumption and exports of the illicit substance, resulting in a downward trajectory in local cannabis supplies.
Even the most expert mechanism of concealment used to hide and push drugs hasn't stopped the indefatigable National Drug Law Enforcement Agency. I don't think I need to tell you that the entire illicit drug trade is predicated on the successful concealment and transportation of the drugs. However, I feel it is important to point out that the NDLEA monitors all types of transportation.
In 2021, the most arrests and seizures occurred in air transportation which you use regularly. This is in addition to the everyday arrests of drug traffickers along the sea and land routes. Consignments rarely make it past the NDLEA's ever-vigilant inspection.
I'd like to draw your attention to the statistics released by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, which reveals that the agency arrested 12, 306 suspects in 2021, including 7 drug barons; convicted 1, 400 offenders; seized over 3.4 million kilograms of assorted drugs; drugs and cash worth over N130 billion; and counselled and rehabilitated 7, 761 drug users.
It is also noteworthy that every drug peddler arrested or consignment seized is a loss for you, the drug dealers. And based on the available facts, one can easily conclude that the Nigerian government is dominating the fight against illicit drugs.
Your methods of concealing drug shipments from authorities are being discovered on a daily basis. The NDLEA intercepted insurgent narcotics worth N6 billion in Lagos port last year. The Captagon pills, a brand of amphetamine intended for use in Nigerian insurgency camps, were expertly concealed in rotor coils. The pills were buried inside the rotor coils in such a way that operatives had to use an electric filing machine to remove them. NDLEA discovered every single pill, despite the high level of camouflage procedure adopted to disguise them.
At airports, NDLEA scanners can detect an illicit substance hidden in human flesh. Things are generally difficult for you out there. The 'ingestion' method is no longer effective. Hundreds of people have recently been caught and made to excrete illicit drugs. Due to NDLEA check-in points surrounding major roadways, roads are no longer safe heaven for moving drugs.
NDLEA officers with their sniffer dogs are stationed across the sea port. The last time you used a religious cover to hide narcotics inside a Merry statue, the NDLEA exposed you and shamed you by publicizing it. Due to the daily dread of peddlers, word on the street is that you are out of concealment methods.
It is therefore evident to point out that you're a failure in every element of the illegal trade. The new NDLEA, which has lately doubled its number of officers, is ever ready to curb the illicit production, manufacturing, trafficking, distribution, and consumption of drugs across Nigeria.
The fact that the NDLEA is now bringing the fight to your doorstep is even more frightening to you. The agency is now raiding drug markets in a new manner of operation, and the underground world of drug merchants is no longer safe. It's not a conflict in which you can project yourself as a victor, especially when your adversary is led by a retired military general.
The new NDLEA, led by Brig. Gen. MB Marwa, whose reputation precedes him, has shown to be more effective than ever in combating Nigeria's drug problem. You, the drug dealers, are no longer invincible. You are being paraded on daily basis by the NDLEA. It is no longer business as usual for you. Nigeria is gradually ridding itself of your venomous presence.
The foregoing prompts me to write this letter in order to warn you of the impending doom that awaits each and every one of you should you choose to continue trafficking drugs across Nigeria, and to remind you of the Nigerian government's political will to combat the country's drug abuse scourge. You're in a losing battle that you can't win. Definitely! NNL.