The operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have disrupted a pre-wedding ceremony drug abuse competition in a community, popularly known as Shola Quarters, Katsina State, and arrested 25 youths participating in the drug party.

This was disclosed in a statement issued by the NDLEA spokesperson, Femi Babafemi, on Sunday, December 10, 2023.

Babafemi revealed that the operatives swooped on the suspects while they were busy taking turns abusing all sorts of illicit substances, including a mixture of multiple drugs mixed in a plastic bucket.

“Though the groom, Musa Gwandi, who organised the wedding drug party along with his friends was not at the venue at the time the 25 others were arrested, he was however nabbed on Sunday 3rd December following a manhunt for him,” he stated.

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He added that the NDLEA officers recovered 81,975 pills of tramadol from three suspects – Mohammed Abubakar, 25; and Hassan Mohammed, 25, both in Response Area, Bayo town in Borno State, while Suleman Hamidu, 27, was nabbed by soldiers in a follow-up operation in Mubi town, Adamawa State.

The NDLEA spokesman noted that the War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) advocacy campaign of the agency continued in equal measure in schools, markets, worship places, and others across the country in the past week.

Babafemi listed the advocacy campaign to include WADA town hall sensitisation lecture by Zone N command in conjunction with the Rivers State command of NDLEA for principals of secondary schools in Rivers State; WADA sensitisation lecture at Community Basic School, Abojupa Idi Igba Ilora, Oyo State; WADA advocacy lecture for students of Obalaoye Junior and Senior Secondary School, Ede, Osun State;  students of Government Secondary School, Michika, Adamawa;  WADA sensitisation town hall meeting with principals of secondary schools in Cross River State;  WADA sensitization lecture at Government Girls Day Secondary School, Gusau, Zamfara State; and same lecture for traders at Cow Market, Awka, Anambra State.

While commending the officers of the anti-drug agency for the arrests and seizures, the Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Retd), urged them and their compatriots across all formations of the agency to maintain the offensive action tempo while creating a balance with their drug demand reduction efforts.

The Star