Nigeria’s National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has intensified its crackdown on cannabis cultivation and distribution, destroying more than 75 tonnes of the drug in recent raids spanning multiple states.
According to agency spokesperson Femi Babafemi, NDLEA teams backed by soldiers and civil defence officers uprooted cannabis fields stretching across 29 hectares in Edo, Delta, Ondo and Taraba States. The largest destruction took place in Delta’s Ndokwa West district, where four plantations yielded 25.5 tonnes. Similar operations in Ondo and Edo uncovered 25 tonnes and 14 tonnes respectively, while 7.5 tonnes were burned in Taraba’s Bali area.
Nearly a tonne of cannabis was also seized from a warehouse in Edo, where a 54-year-old woman was arrested on suspicion of trafficking. Meanwhile in Abuja, two motorcycle couriers were detained for delivering illicit substances within the city. Authorities said one rider was caught with pentazocine injections, while the other carried cannabis packaged for customers.
The NDLEA has pledged to continue its dual strategy of tough enforcement and community education under its War Against Drug Abuse campaign, which includes awareness drives in schools, places of worship, workplaces and neighbourhoods.
