Pubdate: Tue, 31 Jul 2007 Source: This Day (Nigeria) Copyright: 2007 This Day. Contact: http://www.thisdayonline.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2870 NDLEA Move Against Drug Barons National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), has commenced a total offensive against drug barons. The declaration was made by Chairman/Chief Execu-tive of the Agency, Ahmadu Giade, at the public destruction of exhibits at Badagry on Monday July 30, 2007 where a total of 2,811.17 kilogrammes of various hard drugs seized by the Lagos State Command of the Agency and duly forfeited by the law courts were publicly set ablaze. Cannabis also known as Indian hemp, has the highest quantity with 2,516.202kilogrammes. Cocaine is next with 243.408kilogramme and 79 Pinches, while heroin is 51.560 kilogrammes. According to Giade, the Lagos State and Seme commands have seized over 130 bags of Cannabis sativa (Indian hemp) in three separate raid within the last two weeks. He said the colossal seizures recently made, coupled with the ones already forfeited reveals that the drug problem as portrayed by the Agency is far from being an illusion. The NDLEA boss warned that the catastrophic consequences of illicit drug production, trafficking and abuse are worse than a time bomb ready for explosion, adding that it is undisputable that most heinous criminal activities are perpetrated under the influence of drugs. In order to ensure a safe and healthy society the Agency has no alternative than to embolden her capacity to hunt down these arch enemies of the State-drug barons and their accomplices. We can not afford to abandon our highly cherished democracy to be contaminated by the illegal proceeds of drugs; neither must we permit our economy to be polluted by laundered money nor must we allow our treasured youths who are the leaders of tomorrow to be derailed by drug trafficking and abuse. The Agency has commenced a total offensive on drug barons and will continue to chase them, arrest them, seize their drugs and publicly destroy them in a funfair like this. Besides, the assets, bank accounts and ill-gotten business empires of drug barons will be traced, frozen and confiscated. This will help to incapacitate drug barons both financially and otherwise. The country's anti-narcotic position is very clear and it will not brook compromise in the discharge of this national task . The occasion was attended by His Royal Majesty De Wheno Aholu Menu Toyi 1, the Akran of Badagry, representatives of the United States Drug Enforcement (USDEA) in Nigeria led by Mr Sam Gaye and consular attache Mao Yizong of the Consulate General of the People's Republic of China in Nigeria . Also present were heads of security agencies and very senior officers of the Agency. - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom