NDLEA to test students, corps members, security agencies

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, has announced plans to conduct drug tests on tertiary institutions’ new students, security agencies’ fresh recruits, and appointees.

The Chairman of the agency Gen. Mohammed Buba Marwa, (Retd). disclosed this in a meeting with commanders of the 36 states, FCT, and special commands on Monday in Abuja.

He said that he will advise the government on the necessity of carrying out such tests and they will also test for National Youths Service Corps (NYSC) members, new workers, all security agencies, new recruits, and random tests for government appointees.

“NDLEA is ready to help and we must help. The success we make of this particular task goes a long way to determine the socio-economic stability of the nation.

“We need not be told of the nexus between drug use, crime, and criminalities.

“The exponential growth of the nefarious drug activities can be directly linked to the upsurge in crimes such as insurgency, terrorism, kidnapping, cultism, political thuggery, gangsterism, rape, and other maladaptation bedeviling today’s Nigeria, ” he said.

“This will be through traditional institutions, religious bodies, media, NGOs, CSOs, State and local governments among others. We will rehabilitate our rehab centres, make them functional while more will be built.

The NDLEA Chairman said the agency would put in efforts to eradicate an increasing drug abuse culture.

He expressed his determination to run with the National Drug Control Master Plan (NDCMP) adding that the toll free call centers and helplines would soon be set up for the use of Nigerians ready to give information or seek intervention from the agency.

“Ours is a national assignment. Drug has littered everywhere; every community. We will lead the fight and we will succeed. Make no mistake about it, it is a collective effort.

“We will equally devote a lot of efforts to prevention, treatment, and aftercare and focus on family and parenting, community, school systems, advocacy to all groups.

“This will be through traditional institutions, religious bodies, media, NGOs, CSOs, State and local governments among others. We will rehabilitate our rehab centres, make them functional while more will be built.

“And I need results from now on. Our maxim will be offensive action. This means we must go all out constantly on the offensive against the bad guys, ” he said.