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Min of Agric partners NDLEA on alternatives to illicit drugs, rehabilitation of users(Photos)
. As Marwa meets Kyari on areas of collaboration to enhance food, national security
The Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Abubakar Kyari has assured the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency of the readiness of his ministry to support ongoing drug control efforts by NDLEA especially in the areas of creating alternatives for illicit drug producers and provision of agricultural opportunities for drug users undergoing rehabilitation to prevent them from relapse.
Sen. Kyari gave the assurance in his response to the remarks by the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig Gen Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd) who led some members of his management team into a meeting with the minister and top officials of the ministry in Abuja on Thursday 14th August 2025.
Marwa had told the minister that the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Tinubu has food security and national security as part of its focus adding that “we really cannot tackle national security without adequate attention to drug control because they are interlinked.”
He said the visit was to seek collaboration between NDLEA and the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security as part of ongoing efforts to surmount the challenge of drug scourge facing the country. He noted that out of the 14.3 million drug users in Nigeria, 10.6 million of them abuse cannabis alone, making the psychoactive substance the most commonly abused in the country.
“As you know, cannabis is not only smoked, it is also eaten. They make soup with it. They mix it with hot drinks to produce monkey tail. They take it in all kinds of forms. Every week, we make arrests. And still, they keep at it, because there’s so much money in the business. And so, we sat down and reflected and felt that there’s a more permanent solution to this, especially with the growers of cannabis.
“So, we have decided to create another platform called Alternative Development, which seeks to persuade cannabis growers to change from growing cannabis, which is illicit to something legitimate and licit. This will give them at least a legitimate source of income. They will be able to sleep with their two eyes closed. Instead of always in fear of arrest by NDLEA, they will live respectable lives with their families and their communities.
“The Alternative Development project has secured the buy-in of the United Nations Commission on Narcotic Drugs and they are willing to encourage us. But for us to tell cannabis growers, please, don’t grow cannabis, grow something else there has to be incentives for them to agree. I’ve actually had a meeting with some cannabis growers and discussed this idea with them. The fact that they agreed to come and meet me without the fear that they are being tricked so that we arrest them, was a positive sign. And we sat and had an engagement and I’ve also sent a delegation to their communities.
“This is where we need the support of the ministry to give them some inputs, seedlings, tractors, water, fertilizers, chemicals, and others. So, we looked at the possibility of getting them to grow food crops including artemisia annua plant that can fetch the country $100 billion annually. They call it sweet wormwood. The derivative is used for the treatment of malaria. We consulted with IITA, they actually confirmed that they have grown samples across the country. They have done some trials. And it seems to have a very positive outlook.
“With a $100 billion possible income to the country, if this is fully tapped, we’ll suggest that this is probably one of the areas of pharmaceutical crops that would be given to these cannabis growers to farm in addition to other licit crops.”
He said the other area of collaboration is the assimilation of persons coming out of NDLEA rehab facilities into agricultural programmes and projects that will give them livelihood and prevent them from relapse. “Now, when our children, come to us for treatment and rehabilitation, because of drugs, we treat them, and they become normal people, responsible, after the treatment. Then you throw them back again into the same environment where they got into drug abuse, they will relapse.
“So, we thought that within the scheme of this esteemed ministry, if you can assist us so that at the end of their rehabilitation they can be assimilated into some of your agricultural programmes with whatever incentives go with them so that they can be gainfully engaged.”
In his response, the minister agreed that there is a direct correlation between drug abuse and other forms of criminality, noting that if nothing is done urgently by all stakeholders the country may be breeding criminals instead of the next generation of leaders.
“So, we should join hands and this is the collaborative effort that President Tinubu has already mandated us to do in terms of not only achieving food security, employment, job creation, but improvement of livelihood, inclusivity of youth and women in agriculture, access to capital and credit, and so on and so forth.
“I would like to express our commitment to this alternative development initiative. Then, on the issue of your rehab centres, we will work with you so that those being treated can get some livelihood support in terms of tools and other things. We’re willing to partner with you on the excellent work that you’re doing”, the minister assured.
The meeting agreed to set up a technical committee that will work on the details of the collaboration.
The Plateau Vanguard for Democracy has declared its support for Governor Caleb Mutfwang’s directive stopping the activities of a purported Hisbah enforcement group operating in parts of Jos North Local Government Area.
In a statement issued by its National Coordinator, Chris Ishaku, the group said no private organisation had the constitutional authority to intimidate residents, enforce unauthorised rules or impose sanctions outside Nigeria’s established legal system.
The directive followed reports that persons associated with the group had allegedly harassed, intimidated and extorted residents while attempting to compel them to comply with rules not recognised by Plateau State law.
Ishaku described the governor’s intervention as a necessary defence of public order, individual liberty and the equal protection of all residents, irrespective of their religious, ethnic or community affiliations.
“Plateau State belongs equally to all its citizens. No private organisation may appoint itself a police force, court or government and impose sanctions unknown to the Constitution and laws of the state,” he said.
He stressed that support for the directive should not be interpreted as opposition to any religion or community, but as an affirmation that Plateau State has one Constitution, one legal system and one legitimate authority.
The organisation urged religious, traditional, political and community leaders to discourage their followers from participating in unlawful enforcement activities. It advised residents with complaints about the conduct of others to report such matters to the police or other legally constituted agencies.
Ishaku also welcomed the governor’s instruction directing security agencies to identify and investigate those allegedly involved.
He nevertheless called on the agencies to act professionally, respect due process and avoid subjecting innocent residents to collective suspicion.
“Anyone found sponsoring, aiding or carrying out unlawful acts should be prosecuted, while innocent residents must be protected,” he said.
“Peace cannot survive where competing groups create competing laws. Plateau’s diversity must be governed by justice, tolerance and one constitutional order.”
The allegations against the purported group have not been independently established, and no response from its alleged members was included in the statement.
Saina Buba, the Borno State Commissioner for Youth and Sports Development, has threatened political opponents with physical harm if they fail to support the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
Buba made the remark during a campaign inauguration event organised by the Tinubu City Boy Movement, a political support organisation campaigning for President Bola Tinubu’s administration and his anticipated 2027 re-election bid.
Addressing the crowd, the commissioner warned that anyone who opposed the APC by raising a finger against the party would have the same finger cut off.
He said those who challenged the party would have their fingers broken, stressing that the warning was part of the political contest.
Buba also warned that government benefits would be used to favour supporters of the administration while those who refused to support it could face punitive treatment.
The commissioner said those who supported the government would enjoy its benefits, while those who rejected it would face the consequences.
Buba’s comments have sparked outrage.
The Grassroots Mobilisation Network (GMN), a support group of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), on Sunday called on President Bola Tinubu to break his silence over alleged references to him in narcotics-related documents reportedly submitted by the United States FBI before the District Court for the District of Columbia, or resign from office.
The group, in a statement by its spokesperson, Mr Peter Emeka, expressed concern over what it described as the continued silence of the Presidency, arguing that Nigerians deserve clarity on an issue that, in its view, has implications for the country’s international reputation.
Pressing for a US response, the APM National Publicity Secretary, Abubakar, said the sustained efforts by the Tinubu Presidency to block the release of the report to the public heightened suspicion of guilt and desperation for a cover-up.
“The APM urges the United States authorities to note that withholding such information is of enormous harm to Nigeria’s security, national integrity and democratic growth.
“The United States, being a leading democracy in the world, should at all times be seen to facilitate the consolidation of democracy and transparency in the international fight against drug trafficking and corruption.
“The drug and other ancillary allegations against President Tinubu, who is a major contender in the 2027 presidential election, constitute a global issue which continues to harm Nigeria’s reputation among the comity of nations.
“This is especially as the public is already aware of the 1993 $460,000 forfeiture judgment against accounts traced to Tinubu by the US District Court for the Northern District of Illinois following an investigation into drug-related transactions.
“The effect of the $460,000 forfeiture judgment is that, by virtue of Section 137 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended), President Tinubu remains ineligible for election in Nigeria. Moreover, Nigeria is a signatory to international conventions on drugs and money laundering.”
The APM urged the “United States authorities to assist Nigerians in their decision to elect a leader with clean records and not an individual encumbered by drug-related allegations and corruption cases.”
On its part, the spokesman for the Grassroots Mobilisation Network (GMN), Mr Peter Emeka, said, “We call on President Tinubu to come out clean and speak to the nation over the ongoing litigation in America.”
He also criticised Nigeria’s law enforcement and intelligence agencies, accusing them of failing to adequately investigate or respond to the allegations and documents circulating in the public domain.
“Our system has failed for the fact that they were unable to detect all these embarrassing documents being paraded against the President, which are now the subject of litigation in a far-away country,” Emeka stated.
“Our intelligence agencies saddled with the responsibility of investigation and various checks have all failed,” he added.
According to the group, the continued silence from the Presidency is becoming increasingly disturbing and has the potential to deepen public suspicion.
“If the President continues to remain mute, he should quietly resign to save the nation from the ongoing global embarrassment,” Emeka said.
In a related development, the GMN has demanded greater transparency regarding President Tinubu’s reported three-week vacation in Europe.
The group said that, given the prevailing mood in the country and the controversy surrounding the narcotics-related allegations, the Presidency should provide Nigerians with adequate information about the President’s itinerary and engagements while away.
“The prevailing mood of the country requires the Presidency to make a full disclosure of President Tinubu’s movements,” the group said.
The GMN maintained that greater transparency would help dispel speculation, reassure Nigerians and protect the country’s image and standing in the international community.
The group urged the Presidency to address the issues directly rather than allow speculation and unanswered questions to dominate public discourse.
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