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The Katsina State Command of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, has arrested over 500 suspected drug dealers and traffickers, seized 1,310.3184kg of drug exhibits amounting to about 1.3 tons in the state.
The exhibits, comprising 1,294.131kg of Cannabis Sativa, 16.1874kg of Psychotropic Substances, and 105 litres of Codeine, were seized in the past few months.
In the process of seizing them,
The Commander of Narcotics and State Commander of the NDLEA, Mohammed Bashir Ibrahim, stated this on Monday during a grand finale of the United Nations International Day Against Drug Abuse And Illicit Trafficking held at the Katsina Local Government Service Commission.
He said at least three hundred and eighty-eight (388) substance users have also been counseled and rehabilitated within the period, adding that nineteen (19) are still undergoing rehabilitation in the command’s facility.
According to Ibrahim, the command secured fifteen (15) convictions of drug dealers, who were sentenced to various jail terms years, maintaining that the command in conjunction with NDLEA formation in other states arrested ten (10) drug dealers whose consignments were intercepted in other states but were destined for Katsina.
He, however, expressed worry that over 90% of the arrested suspects and counseled clients are between the age bracket of 15-40 years.
“The command has taken the War Against Drug Abuse to the grass root
where traditional rulers have been mobilized to serve as ambassadors, hence advocating for a drug-free society. The schools and public places e.g Motor packs and markets were not left out in our sensitization programs,” he added.
On his part, the Katsina State Governor, Aminu Masari, represented by the State Commissioner for Health, Engineer Yakubu Nuhu Danja, described drug abuse as mostly the major cause of banditry, kidnapping, and other related evils.
According to Danja, the state government has been supportive of the state command of the NDLEA by establishing a drug rehabilitation centre where medical and psychological treatment are being provided for drug dependency and addiction in the center.
The United Nations International Day Against Drug Abuse And Illicit Trafficking is set aside to review the efforts of the NDLEA in the drug war, strengthen its activities, and cooperate in achieving a world free of drug abuse.
This year’s theme is “Addressing Drug Challenges in Health and Humanitarian Crises”.