DRUG TRAFFICKING: A DOOMED MENACE

Cases of drug trafficking are rampant in Nigeria. Unemployment,
impoverishment and the general socio-economic malaise have been
identified as the causes of the illicit trade. Working in partnership
with the Federal Government and the British High Commission in
Nigeria, Hibiscus London last week kicked off an anti-drug trafficking
campaign in Lagos. It is aimed at creating anti-drug trafficking
awareness. Gboyega Akinsanmi writes.

Comrade Wale Aribatise was a student activist, but he has now become a
pastor, and is currently working with a non-governmental organisation
in Lagos with a passion to fight social ills. Just a decade ago, he
was walking on the street of Lagos in the night when some policemen
arrested and detained him for no specific offence other than what he
claimed the officers called wandering.

On that fateful day, Aribatise left office late and could not get a
bus going his direction. He eventually chose to walk home rather than
wasting time at the bus stop. He had not walked far when the policemen
from Ikoyi Police Station arrested him for alleged wandering, even
when he showed them all his particulars that could assist the officers
in further investigation of his personality.

A lawyer by training, Aribatise had already resigned to fate wondering
why he was detained unlawfully and without legal justification. He was
hoping for divine intervention when a young rich man approached him,
promising to hire a legal practitioner to plead his case before the
court and secure him freedom. He was assured of all legal assistance
and financial aid he might need to be off the hook.

But the assistance was not without a cost. The young rich man gave
some conditions that Aribatise needed to meet to attract the favour.
Aribatise was only assured of all the assistance on the condition that
he obliged to travel to the United Kingdom to represent the man and
return home within one week, but with promises that he too would
become a wealthy man when he returned. He was told he would meet a
Volkswagen car at the back of his rented apartment.

He rejected the offer and chose to remain in detention. After spending
few days in detention, Aribatise was transferred to prison. To his
amazement, the man traced him to Ikoyi Prison where he claimed he was
without definite offences apart from allegation of unlawful wandering
for which he was arrested. He was again offered financial and legal
assistance on the same condition.

He rejected the offer because he claimed it was against his moral
values, questioning how he would become a wealthy person by just going
to the UK to deliver message and come back. The man, whom Aribatise
described as a hardline drug baron, went away and refused to approach
again having seen his determination not to accede to stipulated
conditions and promises.

Now a pastor and a social worker, Aribatise gave this testimony last
week at the relaunch of National Anti-Drug Trafficking Campaign held
in Lagos. Giving his encounter with policemen few years back, he
concluded that anti-drug officers and other security operatives are
aiding and abetting drug barons in Nigeria, and asked the National
Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) to look inward and ensure strict
disciplinary measures against all erring officers.

The relaunch marked a new development in the anti-drug trafficking war
for its focus on public awareness, mass education, grassroot advocacy
and value re-orientation fresh from the ailing option of arrest and
prosecution, which social workers and the media believed, has yielded
desired result; neither has it deterred drug traffickers, barons and
intending ones from engaging in the drug business.

The relaunch was a success, giving anti-drug agencies,
non-governmental organisations, civil society groups and the media the
opportunity to discus the drug issues. Hibiscus London initiated the
relaunch, although it partnered the Federal Government and the British
High Commission in Nigeria to devise an effective tool of anti-drug
war. It commenced the campaign in 2006 with a goal to change attitude
and re-orientate drug traffickers and young people who may be
attracted into the drug business on the question of money.

His encounter indeed explains realities in the anti-drug war. He
recognised how weak security institutions, worsening economic crisis,
collapsed value system and culture of compromised leadership have
weakened the anti-drug campaign in Nigeria. "But the truth remains:
most drug barons are getting backing and support from the law
enforcement agencies, and this trend has given the traffickers a
resilient spirit to continue this illicit deals against the law.

"There are bad eggs in the anti-drug agency, and they are compromising
both domestic and international legal standard. This is a conspiracy
against the state and its institutions. It is denting the image of
Nigeria around the world, and costing thousands of integrity-conscious
Nigerians all manners of embarrassment in various developed countries.
I am not sure if NDLEA has discovered. If it has not, its leadership
should start looking inward to ensure sanity," he said.

The account of Aribatise indeed brought a new dimension to the
anti-drug campaign, and this propelled Nigeria's anti-drug communities
to dissect the role of NDLEA and other law enforcement agencies in the
war against drug barons and traffickers. There seems to be consensus
among the civil society groups that NDLEA, Custom and Immigration
Services "have not been doing enough to make Nigeria difficult for
hard drugs and their pushers.

But speaking strictly for NDLEA, Dr. Baba Hussein, Director of
Operations, disagreed with this line of thought. He scored the
anti-drug agency relatively high, but identified short-term jail terms
and god-fatherism as key factors sabotaging the war against drug
barons and traffickers. For Hussein, it is not good enough to blame
NDLEA for the challenges of drug trafficking. At least, the agency is
fighting the anti-drug war hard.

He cited different cases the agencies had investigated and prosecuted
with tremendous success. He also gave the agency pass mark in tracking
down drug traffickers in different parts of the country. Indeed,
Hussein said the agency "has been discharging its primary
responsibilities amid teeming challenges. At least, NDLEA has been
performing relatively well given its recent records. Civil society is
not ignorant of the landmark success the agency has made."

Hussein agreed that NDLEA still "has a lot of work to do." He assured
the civil society groups that the leadership of NDLEA "is committed to
fighting this social ill aground in Nigeria." But Hussein identified
funding as a key factor hindering the agency from doing much. He gave
example of a radio programme NDLEA was doing few months back. "The
programme had a lot of impact, but we had to stop it when airtime we
paid elapsed, and the National Assembly has to approve another fund to
continue that kind of radio programme.

"We do nothing on our own. We deal with the National Assembly. So, we
only discharge our responsibilities based on the approval for the
agency. This is a major challenge NDLEA is (and has been) facing, even
though it might be correct that there are some bad eggs in the law
enforcement agencies that give support to drug barons and traffickers.
Indeed, NDLEA has fought a good anti-drug war, but it deserves support
from civil society groups and the media," he explained.

More disturbing is the issue of short-jail term given convicted barons
and traffickers. It is another challenge Hussein said NDLEA could not
avert because the agency was established primarily to track down drug
barons and traffickers, investigate drug-related cases and prosecute
if there are hard and evidential facts to that effect. He explained
that NDLEA had no time over the specific jail term a convict deserves
for it "is purely a question of law interpretation.

"There is nothing we can do about that. We are not the judges who
determined those cases on the point of law. The judges have the final
say about the jail term a drug convict deserves. The judges too
determine these cases based on constitutional provisions and NDLEA
Act. NDLEA charges drug barons, but the courts determine the charges
brought against the barons and mete out punitive measures in reference
to relevant laws. This is how we carry our duties," he added.

But he agreed with the critics, especially civil society groups and
the media, which frown at the soft punitive measures the courts were
awarding against those convicted for drug-related offences. It was
decried that the short jail term "is indeed encouraging drug barons
and traffickers because it has dawned on them that they will only
spend between three months and two years in prisons. So, it does not
matter to them again whether they are caught or not."

The above position has led Hussein to suggest an intensified
collaborative effort between NDLEA, anti-drug groups and the media to
mount pressure on the House of Representatives and Senate to review
drug laws in Nigeria. This exercise "will offer us fresh opportunity
review and amend those codes and sections relating to punitive
measures since it is apparent harsh jail term will deter the drug
barons and traffickers from engaging in illicit deal and business."

With this option, Hussein is thus anticipating better success in the
anti-drug trafficking war if collaborative actions are taken, though
he knows it is too simple to win the war as literally presented in the
perspectives of civil society groups and the media. This is why he
said: "Anti-drug war is a complex issue. It is not easy to catch drug
barons and traffickers, though we are trying our best.

"But we need assistance from the media, non-governmental organisations
(NGOs) and civil society organisations (CSOs) at large. NGOs, CSOs and
the media should regroup and come up with the strategies on how to
fight drug trafficking war. NDLEA needs support from all the civil
society groups in Nigeria, and the media should desist from
publicising drug barons and traffickers. If the barons are questioned
and treated with contempt, they will find it hard to continue with the
illicit business, even though they are eking living from it," he said.

For British High Commissioner in Nigeria, Sir Bob Dewar, anti-drug war
is a war worth fighting, and it requires collaborative efforts as the
NDLEA director earlier said. He emphasised the roles of anti-drug
groups to fight the social malaise, and hinged their roles (if
well-played) on the need to build a drug-free nation where drug barons
and traffickers cannot find a safe haven. He said trafficking in hard
drugs posed threat on the global and immediate environments with
tendency to wreak havoc on human capital if addicts increase.

Dewar mentioned that the Federal Government of Nigeria should take the
issue of drug trafficking more seriously and effectively. The
leadership of Nigeria is, according to him, required to fight
drug-related crimes in the country and in Africa. NDLEA has done well
in the recent times, and has been able to fight an anti-drug war in
accordance with domestic laws and international conventions. But it
still has a lot of things in order to ensure a wholesome success.

He also tasked the civil society groups, non governmental
organisations and the media to support NDLEA the anti-drugs
trafficking battle because the war "requires inputs from the community
of anti-drug agencies and groups across countries. He mentioned the
need to embark on intensive anti-drugs trafficking campaign against
and create more awareness at all levels in order to discourage
prospective barons from venturing into hard drug business and deal.

Dewar said: "Anti-drugs trafficking campaign is a global issue. When
we discuss it, we must take it more seriously because of its adverse
effect on our society. It is a good fight. It is worth fighting if we
must create a drug-free world. This kind of campaign is going on
across the world. It is never all about the United Kingdom alone;
neither is it all about Nigeria. It is about all countries
irrespective of race, colour, language and religious
inclinations".

If anti-drugs trafficking war must be fought successfully, Dewar
stated: "We cannot underestimate the role of leadership in the
campaign. Nigeria is the leading African state. She has crucial roles
to play in the campaign against hard drugs. We have taken this
campaign to China. It is not peculiar to one country. It is indeed a
global issue. It is your issue. It is also mine. We must take very
seriously because of the collateral damage hard drugs can cause
humanity and economy.

"The Federal Government needs to do appraisal and fight ahead. She
must combat corruption. This is fundamental if a drug-free society
must emerge. There should be no room for impunity. There should be no
sacred cows if the anti-drug war must be a success. There should be no
hidden place for drug barons, traffickers and those backing them
underneath. We must all rise against it. These calls therefore for
holistic actions against drug barons and traffickers," he said.

With the relaunch of anti-drug trafficking campaign, Dewar canvassed
for value orientation directed at those trafficking hard drugs, public
awareness targeted at intending drug traffickers, mass education meant
for those who are unaware of hard drugs and grassroot campaign aimed
at building anti-drug consciousness. He acknowledged that it was an
easy war, but claimed success "is evident if the anti-drug agencies
and groups team against those traffickers."

To attain the feat earlier mentioned, the civil society groups
believed it is a function of political will since the collapsed value
system and development crises among others have linked to the surge in
the number of drug baron and traffickers in Nigeria. This is why the
groups called the governments at all levels to address such
socio-economic issues as poverty, unemployment and hunger, conditions
which many social workers believe, are leading the young people into
drug business.

But FPWP Hibiscus has been doing well in fighting an anti-drug war.
Though working in partnership with British High Commission and Federal
Government, the London-based non-governmental organisation has been
creating anti-drug trafficking awareness across the country since
reports largely show that most drug traffickers deny that they had the
knowledge of what they swallowed before they left the shores of
Nigeria or their countries.

This has prompted Hibiscus Director, Mrs. Olga Heaven MBE to deepen
the anti-drug trafficking campaign which she started in 2006. It was
indeed a successful initiative that created better awareness across
the world. For Heaven, it is not enough to arrest those trafficking
hard drugs. Like some social workers, she argued, continual arrest may
not likely discourage drug barons and traffickers.

It is in the spirit of value re-orientation and public awareness that
Heaven believed the war against drug trafficking should be fought.
According to her, this entails instilling moral discipline and
inculcating a culture of anti-drug trafficking. Once this culture is
instilled in children, it will definitely become an order by which
they live their lives and conduct their formal and informal activities.

This is imperative if the structure of drug trafficking must be
wrecked in the next decade, Hibiscus director said. "This is why we
are intensifying the campaign against drug trafficking. But we can
only fight an anti-drug war if we re-orientate the young people and
create awareness at all levels that hard drugs are prohibited. While
prosecution will serve some purpose, it can do every this is why it
becomes fundamental to inculcate a new culture of anti-drug
trafficking in our social lives and make an object of taboo or
abomination."

The launch of Bola Gets Rich Quick Jingle was a step to achieve value
re-orientation and public awareness in all strata of young Nigerians
who can be lured into the business of drug trafficking. Even though
the jingle was criticised on the ground that it did not represent the
actual picture of how Nigerians speak pidgin English, Heaven said the
jingle was meant to show realities of what transpired between drug
traffickers and their godfathers before the deal.

Promised to develop jingles that will reflect cultural and lingual
diversities of Nigeria's ethnic compositions, Heaven therefore
advocated for defined partnership between the Federal Government,
civil society groups, anti-drug agencies and groups, the media and the
international community to inculcate restore a new moral rectitude,
anti-drug consciousness and value re-orientation. "This is what we
need to discourage intending barons and traffickers."