Pubdate: Fri, 30 Apr 2004
Source: This Day (Nigeria)
Copyright: 2004 This Day.
Contact:  http://www.thisdayonline.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2870
Author: Oghenekevwe Laba

NDLEA BOSS BECOMES IDEC PRESIDENT

Lagos

The Chairman/Chief Executive of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency 
(NDLEA), Alhaji Bello Lafiaji, has been elected President of the European 
Working Group of the International Drug Enforcement Conference (IDEC).

His election took place at a conference of the organisation at Lima, Peru, 
recently. He had the Secretary of the IDEC two years ago.

A total of 400 delegates, representing 70 countries were at the conference. 
Prior to the election, there was an overwhelming vote of confidence on the 
Nigerian's tenure as secretary of the organisation. He was consequently 
elected unanimously by participating countries as president.

A statement signed by NDLEA Assistant Director, Public Affairs, Jonah 
Ache-ma, stated that the Admini-strator of the United States Drug 
Enforcement Admin-istration (USDEA) and the United States Secretary of 
State, representative of the President of America, Geo-ge Bush, at the 
meeting, tasked Lafiaji to further ensure positive strides in global drug 
control, especially in the area of exchange of intelligence and 
international development.

This, they added, has to do with the development and application of 
effective anti-money laundering, assets forfeiture and development of new 
measures towards control of production and distribution of synthetic drugs 
and precursor chemicals.

Achema stated that Lafiaji, being the first African to be appointed into 
the office, was saddled with the responsibility of mobilising countries and 
accepting their membership of the organisation, which was aimed at the 
establishment of a verile counter-narcotic intelligence database and 
exchange of valuable information among member countries.

He said experts were of the view that the NDLEA boss' appointment was a 
demonstration of the favou-rable perception of the international community 
of Nigeria and that Lafiaji's ascendancy to the presidency of the esteem 
global family of drug control was a further testimony of the positive 
international accreditation of Nigeria's anti-drug efforts by the present 
administration of Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, efficiently piloted by the 
leadership of the NDLEA.

In appreciation of his appointment, Lafiaji, who said he was humbled by the 
appointment, assured the international community of Nigeria's commitment to 
the drug war as well as his renewed offensive in the fight against hard 
drugs, promising to see to the enlistment of more countries into the 
organisation.

"The fight against hard drugs is not a country affair. This is because if 
one country succeeds and neighbouring countries still remain trafficking 
hubs, then the country may still have to sleep with one eye open", Lafiaji 
stated.
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