Buhari seeks international support to tackle drug abuse

President Muhammadu Buhari has called on all well-meaning Nigerians and international partners to join hands with relevant government agencies in the fight against drug abuse.

President Buhari made the call Friday when he received the report of the Presidential Advisory Committee on the Elimination of Drug Abuse, (PACEDA) in the State House.

The president, who said the enormity of the menace required the cooperation of all and sundry, stated that winning the war against drug abuse remained one of the critical elements of the Next Level mandate of his administration.

He renewed the commitment of government to the welfare of the citizenry by fighting the scourge of drug abuse.

“Winning the war becomes one of the critical elements of the Next Level mandate of this administration. As a government, we have the responsibility to ensure the security and well-being of our people.

“Our findings have shown that it is more difficult to bring down crime rate to acceptable levels without clearing our country of substance abuse,” he said in a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity Femi Adesina.

Buhari, who thanked the committee for its timely and diligent prosecution of the assignment, assured that the matter was of utmost importance, and the report would be studied along with the recommendations.

Earlier, the Chairman of the committee, Brigadier General Buba Marwa (retd) had told the President that since the committee was inaugurated in December, 2018, it interfaced with a wide spectrum of stakeholders including Ministries, Departments and Agencies, Non-Governmental organisations, Civil Society Organisations, Faith-based Organisations, professional bodies, international partners and members of drug user communities with their parents, teachers and care givers.

Marwa added that the assignment, which took members to all the geopolitical zones of the country, confirmed the fears of President Buhari that Nigeria had a very strong drug problem that needed to be tackled as a national emergency.

He, however, said the key to tackling the menace is a formal launch of a War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) as part of declaration of a state of emergency on the menace as well as the establishment of a National Drug Control Commission.