The Plateau Command of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) on Tuesday said it had seized 1,316 kilogrammes of hard drugs in the first half of 2016. Mrs Ngozi Maduine, Plateau NDLEA Commandant, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Jos that the command also secured the conviction of 65 suspects for drug offences during the period.
Maduine said that a total of 151 suspects, comprising 140 males and 11 females were arrested for trafficking in cocaine and cannabis sativa in the first half of the year.
She said that the convicts, mostly youths, were serving various jail terms and expressed concern about the involvement of adolescents and young adults in drug abuse and trafficking.
According to the narcotics boss, psychoactive drugs and psychotropic substances affect the brain thereby producing effects such as sedation, stimulation and change in mood or behaviour.
She said that drug abuse was associated with many social vices such as armed robbery, youth restiveness, violence, communal crises, murder, rape and prostitution.
The commandant said that the Agency had successfully rehabilitated 39 drug-dependent persons in the state during the period.
She also said that the command had embarked on intensive drug abuse awareness and sensitisation programme targeting the youth in order to reduce demand and supply of psychotropic substances.
“The command has chosen to tackle the menace of drug abuse by ensuring that there is a demand and supply reduction.
“This is in consonance with the theory of demand and supply which states that without demand there would not be supply,” she said. (NAN)
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