The Taraba State command of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, has identified the state as a hub for illicit drug consumption. It said individuals between the ages of 16 and 46 are most affected.
Nanzing Sallah, the state commandant, said this on Wednesday at a meeting with the state council of the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ).
He said that methamphetamine (ice), codeine, marijuana, and tramadol are among the narcotics that are commonly used in the area and attributed this alarming trend to the actions of drug traffickers who use the state as a transit hub.
Additionally, he connected the high rate of criminal activities in the state to drug abuse.
Reiterating the commitment of the agency to addressing the issue, Sallah reported numerous arrests and seizures of hard drugs in the state.
While commending the state government for pledging to establish a rehabilitation centre, the facility, if eventually established, he believed would go a long way in rehabilitating drug abusers.
He assured the NUJ of the Agency’s commitment to working together, stating that this kind of relationship would assist promoting the agency’s operations and repair the state’s negative image.
NUJ State Chairman Mathew Jen praised the organization’s efforts to prevent drug usage in the state assuring the NDLEA of the journalists’ commitment to provide broad coverage in order to accomplish the shared objective of a drug-free Taraba State.
