By Ken Chiwendu
Chairman of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa Retd says operatives of the Agency found large consignment of illicit in the home of a serving Senator in Illorin,Kwara State.
At a media briefing on Monday,Marwa said the recent attack on the NDLEA by Senator Oyelola Yisa Ashiru (APC Kwara South) was borne out of vendetta .
He said the senator’s house in Ilorin, Kwara State, was raided and consignment of drugs recovered.
Represented by Mr Femi Babafemi, Director, Media and Advocacy of the agency, Marwa also said three of Ashiru’s aides were arrested, prosecuted and sentenced, including, one sent to jail in June this year.
The NDLEA Boss berated Ashiru for his comment during plenary last week that “the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency is corrupt and compromised…”
Contributing to the debate on a ‘Bill for an Act to establish National Institute for Drug Awareness and Rehabilitation’, Ashiru had claimed that
, “The failure of NDLEA has resulted in the high rate of drug trafficking going on in the country. The NDLEA is corrupt and compromised, hence, I support the creation of National Institute for Drug Awareness and Rehabilitation.”
The NDLEA, however commended the good works of the Senate but tackled the Senator on his unprovoked attack on the Agency.
“While acknowledging the great work of the Senate towards the upliftment of Nigeria and Nigerians especially their support for the ongoing concerted efforts towards the amendment of the NDLEA Act, the Agency however said it is duty-bound to respond to the unprovoked attack against it by Senator Ashiru during his contribution to the debate on a new bill for an Act to establish the National Institute for Drug Awareness and Rehabilitation on Tuesday, October 15, 2024,” the agency said.
Babafemi said that the NDLEA waited for a whole week hoping the lawmaker will clarify his position on such a weighty allegation against it but failing to do that, it is left with no option than to come out and set the record straight for the benefit of other distinguished members of the Senate, its local and international partners as well as the general public.
“The personal house of the senator (Ashiru ) in GRA Ilorin, the capital of Kwara State, had been raided in recent past, where drugs and illicit substances were recovered while two of his aides: Ibrahim Mohammed and Muhammed Yahaya were arrested. Based on credible intelligence and surveillance which confirmed that the senator’s house was being used as a drug joint for drug dealers and users, the house was raided by our operatives at 1:30pm on February 4, 2024 during which the two aides were arrested, while a third suspect escaped arrest.
“In another encounter with the senator, the agency also received intelligence that some of his boys popularly known as ‘Omo Senator’ operating from his home town, Offa, were equally dealing in illicit drugs. A raid was subsequently carried out on their joint in Offa where one of them, Oluwatosin Odepidan was arrested and illicit drugs such as methamphetamine and cannabis recovered from him on June 11, 2023.
“The bid to get the agency drop the case against Odepidan including a visit to the Kwara State Command headquarters of the agency in Ilorin by the Personal Assistant to the senator, one Omoluabi, was rebuffed as Odepidan was promptly charged to court and prosecuted.
“Though the culprit jumped court bail in 2023, he was rearrested in 2024 after the court issued a bench warrant for his arrest. He was eventually convicted and sentenced in June 2024.
“So, going by this backstory, it is deductible that these encounters that the agency has had with the senator, must have been responsible for his outburst, and unfortunately, false allegation, the type that nobody within and outside of government has ever levelled against NDLEA before,”
Further he said, that the NDLEA has become a regional leader among drug enforcement agencies. It wondered how an agency so vilified by Senator Ashiru could attract so much goodwill at home and abroad.
“Suffice it to say that in the past three years, NDLEA has emerged as a regional leader among national drug law enforcement agencies. So, come to think about it, an agency so badmouthed by Senator Ashiru couldn’t have been attracting such international goodwill and commendation for being the ‘most corrupt government agency’ in Nigeria.
“Against the background of our encounter with people linked to him, we are wont to believe that Senator Ashiru’s invectives against NDLEA were borne out of vendetta and not any opinion made in the public interest.”.
