The fight on drugs is not new, as many countries throughout the world have developed plans to shield their citizens from the devastation caused by these dangerous substances.
When the United States of America (USA) sent security personnel to Columbia in the late 1980s to combat the manufacture of cocaine that was primarily being exported to the USA, it perplexed everyone.
The companies that process the tubers into powder and cracks, as well as the plantations where the plant is cultivated, were thoroughly inspected by security personnel.
The war’s conclusion decreased the volume of shipments from Columbia to the United States.
Nigeria’s National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has always supported the seizure and destruction of cannabis sativa plantations.
As part of his duties, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (retd), the current Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of the NDLEA, has developed a novel approach to combat drug cultivation and trafficking in the nation.
Similar to how he launched the Keke Marwa tricycle to alleviate transportation issues during his tenure as Lagos’ Military Administrator, Marwa has developed a new plan, dubbed the Alternative Development Initiative, to deter cannabis sativa cultivation throughout the nation.
Since the planters are given the necessary equipment and seeds to start cultivating legal crops in their communities, this program is comprehensive in both its design and execution.
The former Nigerian High Commissioner to South Africa disclosed that the first beneficiaries of the project’s pilot program are former cannabis sativa growers during his presentation last Tuesday in Akure, the capital of Ondo State.
He pointed out that because of the parents’ illegal commerce, their children are unable to attend school, endangering their futures.
They feared that their children would be used as a means of tracking them by drug law enforcement.
In addition, they kept their kids in secret huts so that their classmates wouldn’t make fun of them for their parents’ illicit business.
The children of the erstwhile cannabis sativa growers now have a safe future because to the new measure approved by the Buba Marwa-led NDLEA.
Now that their parents are not living the life of a fugitive, they are able to walk freely and enroll in public schools.
Due to the agency’s partnership with IITA, observers at the scheme’s introduction observed that the initiative would survive Marwa’s administration, similar to the Keke Marwa.
They added that the NDLEA leader had been interacting with the former cannabis sativa cultivators for more than a year before to the scheme’s launch on Tuesday last week, indicating that it is not a crash program.
The pilot program was selected for three villages with the goal of soon expanding it to additional areas where cannabis sativa is grown nationwide.
The decision to launch the pilot program in the state that is known to be the biggest producer of the illegal narcotic, according to social pundits, reeks of being ready to make it a success.
Inquiries from the crowd during the pilot program’s launch also demonstrated how people are expected to jump right in.
People were thrilled when Marwa said that the plan encompasses fisheries, poultry, and animal husbandry in addition to agriculture.
“We are not talking only of switching crops, we have to go beyond that to actually develop the communities to give them sustainable livelihoods in terms of the farm inputs, roads, water, clinics, and schools,” Marwa reassured the contrite growers.
And ready markets, of course. I want to confirm that markets are ready.They want to be confident that there is a market when they expand.
The plan was spiced up by the state governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, who pledged to help the project by giving NDLEA land and seedlings.
Several cannabis sativa growers will willingly leave the illegal trade and join the plan in response to the agency’s alluring offer, according to observers.
All illegal plant producers and dealers who are prepared to ditch the trade would be welcomed and integrated into the plan without being detained or charged, the drug czar promised.
He promised that no one will be arrested using the project as a dishonest tactic.
It is a well-known reality that drug lords profit greatly from the illegal trade, often at the expense of society and the health of certain citizens.
According to Marwa, investigations have shown that these barons only employ the growers’ tools because they pay them a pitiful amount while they sit in their city palaces and bask in the ill-gotten cash.
According to the head of NDLEA, investigations also showed that the growers are unsure of their employer. The cartel was found to be loosely connected but well organized.
It was noted at the launch that Marwa was not fighting the war alone because other groups from Europe, Asia, and America were working with him to make it successful.
The audience was expected to be some friends and associates of the agency’s boss when Femi Babafemi, the Director, Media & Advocacy of NDLEA, who served as a compere at the launching, informed them that some personalities from agencies and groups providing technical support to the agency would give goodwill messages via video calls.
In the new measure he established, it was found that many of the combatants on the drug warfronts around the world were in contact with the NDLEA chief.
The callers expressed trust in Marwa’s strategy to combat the war by addressing the underlying causes of drug cultivation and trafficking in their contributions.
As it provides illicit cannabis producers with sustainable livelihoods, analysts claim that the Alternative Development Initiative will address poverty, hunger, unemployment, environmental degradation, and instability.
At the Town Hall meeting, which was attended by monarchs and other important national players, Marwa informed the audience that the agency is transitioning from enforcement to empowerment.
He always intended to use empowerment instead of enforcement.
In order to ensure that “NDLEA will no longer be enemies but friends with the communities,” communities were also urged to organize groups to combat illegal narcotics and support the agricultural initiative.
The project was not thrown at the communities because, according to the NDLEA boss, it offers a chance for interaction between the NDLEA and communities engaged in illicit cropping. However, the offer is limited to communities that are sincere and willing to switch from growing illicit crops like cannabis to growing legal crops.
In order to address the populace and kick off the project in the three areas selected for the pilot program, the NDLEA chief himself traveled there.
The initiative delighted the traditional rulers, who proclaimed their support for it.
Marwa revealed that he has asked the National Assembly to examine the rules after noticing that the harsh measures offered by the current legislation are insufficient to deter barons and peddlers from engaging in the illegal activity.
He said that, should the lawmakers approve it, the minimum penalty for using drugs would be 25 years in prison without the possibility of a fine.
The 2018 UN drug usage survey revealed that 15 million Nigerians use hard drugs, which made Marwa desperate to take drug lords and dealers to their knees.
The users, who range in age from 15 to 64, claim that this is over three times the global average.
His grievance is that drug usage has fueled criminal activity and had terrible effects on numerous families and communities.
Terrorists have been found to reside among the cannabis-growing villages in the deep forests, according to intelligence sources.
Mara angrily stated that he finds this intolerable.
However, observers urged all parties involved to back the organization in its efforts to eradicate hard narcotics from the country.
In order to lessen the pressure the agency was under, lawmakers were charged with reviewing drug laws as quickly as possible.