The recent arrest of intending pilgrims with cocaine hours before their departure for Hajj in Saudi Arabia was a feat for which the operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, deserved a standing ovation.
The details of the arrest, published by the media based on a statement by the agency, indicated that the suspects, four in number, were caught red-handed at a hotel in Oshodi, Lagos at the point when two of them were about to ingest 100 pellets of the illicit drug each.
It was unimaginable what would have happened to them in Saudi Arabia if they were caught in the holy land.
They would risk the death penalty, which is the prescribed punishment for drug trafficking in the Kingdom, and Nigeria would once again be put in a bad light, as a nation of ‘drug traffickers.’
One way or the other, those suspects had NDLEA to thank for saving their skin, because either they were ignorant of the capital punishment for drug offences in Saudi or they were just daredevil desperadoes trying to fulfil a death wish.
At the same time, Nigerians, particularly those already in Hajj, have to thank the agency for saving them from embarrassment from their black sheep compatriots.
In a country where the Muslim Ummah globally had gathered for a holy pilgrimage, how would they have felt if their Nigerian brothers and sisters were paraded as traffickers of illicit drugs?
NDLEA promised to work with the Saudi authorities to fish out the recipient of the cocaine consignment in Saudi.
The significance of the NDLEA feat is more pronounced when connected with the statement by the Charge d’affaires/Deputy Head of Mission of the Royal Thai Embassy in Nigeria, Mr. Kriwat Pharmorabuta, who two weeks ago commended the efforts of the Agency under the leadership of Brig-Gen Mohamed Buba Marwa (rtd).
In his words “I have good news that I received as we speak, because before, there were around 800 prisoners from Nigeria in Thai prisons, but right now the number has decreased greatly, it is less than 200.
“That means it’s very difficult now for them to get out with the drugs. So, I congratulate you and the Nigerian people.
“I feel pleased because I’m a diplomat in Nigeria and so I love not only my country, I love also Nigeria because Nigeria is my second home.
“So, when I receive good news like this, I feel very happy which in my opinion is a great feat not just for the Agency but for the nation as a whole.”
We can all attest that NDLEA is one of the best if not the best performing Agency in the past three years and this is as a result of the rate at which drug peddlers are being arrested, drug seizures, and eventual prosecution.
This notwithstanding, the Agency still has a lot to do in ridding the country of the scourge of Illicit drug use and trafficking because “cutting the supply will drastically reduce the demand” and this is a collective responsibility of everyone not just the NDLEA, and also, it will be of great advantage to the country if the Federal Government can escalate necessary support in terms of funds, training, and gadgets to make the job easier and also motivate their gallant officers in discharging their duties.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Oye Lawal writes from Gwarimpa, Abuja, Nigeria’s Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
