By Nicholas Kalu, Abuja

The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rep. Femi Gbajabiamila, has rejoiced with the Chairman of the Police Service Commission (PSC), Alhaji Musiliu Adeola Kunbi Smith, as the elder statesman clocks 75 years.

Gbajabiamila, who described Smith as one of the foremost police officers Nigeria has produced, said the former Inspector-General of Police (IGP) has become a role model to many.

He said as a Lagosian, Alhaji Musiliu Smith displayed high professionalism throughout his years of public service, which culminated in his appointment as the IGP in May, 1999.

In a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Lanre Lasisi, he said the period in which Smith served as IGP saw the repositioning of the Nigeria Police Force to meet the challenges of that time.

Gbajabiamila noted with delight how Smith served committedly as the Chairman of the Skye Bank Board of Directors in 2006 and the Chairman of Lagos State Security Council in 2007.

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The Speaker urged the current crop of policemen and women to follow the footsteps of the likes of Smith, whom he said made the Nigeria Police proud during his days.

Gbajabiamila also expressed satisfaction at the way Alhaji Smith has been handling the affairs of the Police Service Commission since his appointment as the Chairman for almost three years now.

“Today is a special day for a foremost elder statesman, Alhaji Musiliu Smith. I congratulate the chairman of the PSC for marking this day in good health.

“The people of Lagos State and indeed Nigeria are proud of you. One can only wish you good health and protection from the Almighty Allah,” Gbajabiamila said.

Born on April 17, 1946, Musliu Smith was the 10th Inspector General of Police (IGP) between May, 1999 and March, 2002.

 

As parts of activities marking International Women’s Day, a coalition of women group have called on the three tiers of government to eliminate gender discrimination in all its appointments.

Speaking to The Nation, the ED, Gender Perspective in Development, Tammie Edet Kammonke, noted that women and girls in Nigeria stand to benefit immensely from an enabling policy environment, saying that gender-responsive legislations constitute a key determinant of progression towards gender equality.

Kammonke commended the Nigerian Senate for its intention to amend the Nigerian Constitution to ensure gender parity, stressing its resolve to improve the fortunes of women and girls, as well as expunging provisions of the law that infringes on the rights of women and girls.

“It is very heartwarming to know that the Dr. Ahmad Ibrahim Lawan-led Nigerian Senate has made such an important resolution given the significant influence the Senate wields over the legislative process. Women and girls in Nigeria stand to benefit immensely from an enabling policy environment because gender-responsive legislations constitute a key determinant of progression towards gender equality.

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“This singular act will serve as a great tribute to Margaret Ekpo who played a pivotal role in the actualisation of universal adult suffrage for Nigeria women and other foremost women rights activists like Gambo Sawaba, Fumilayo Ransome Kuti and Janet Mokelu who played pioneering roles in the emancipation of Nigerian women.

Also speaking, the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Cedar Seed Foundation, Lois Auta, stated that women have not achieved 5 percent, not to talk of achieving 35 percent.

Auta said, “I want to see women being supported and encouraged to run for offices without any barrier or hindrances that will stop them. I want to see women being carried along in every government agenda, policies and programmes; when the president is a man, the vice should be a woman; when governors of Nigeria states are men, the deputies should be women; when local government chairman are men, vice should be women, our counsellors should be 50 percent of female candidates, doing that will ensure the achievement of the 35 percent.”

In her submission, Barr Rhoda Tyoden stated that the world is a global village, adding that for any nation to develop and be healthy; there must be gender parity in public life.

Stressing the need for constitutional amendment, she said, “We must continue to demand for accountability in all ramifications. That is why the Nigerian women are demanding for the amendment of the constitution to address the continuous discrimination and violation of women’s rights both in private and in public life.”

Former President of the Republic of Liberia, Mrs. Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, has joined the call for more women in elective positions in the sub-region.

Johnson Sirleaf also urged the Speaker of the ECOWAS Parliament, Sidie Tunis, to champion the cause of West African women among member states.

Sirleaf made the call when she received Tunis who led the delegation of the ECOWAS Parliament (ECOPARL) on a courtesy visit to her residence in Monrovia.

The visit follows the successful completion of the ECOWAS Parliament meeting of “Empowerment of Women in the West-African Sub-region”.

The meeting of the ECOPARL Joint Committee on Social Affairs, Gender and Women Empowerment, Education, Science and Culture, Health seeks to proffer solutions to issues affecting women in the sub-region.

Sirleef commended the initiative of Tunis so far towards ensuring the inclusion of women across all sectors. “I am pleased to see many women in this gathering and that brings me to say that except for Senegal, our countries have not done well in politics and we need to do more.

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“We cannot do it unless you lead us. I will need to recognise the value and contributions of women to the peace, security and development.

“So I will call upon you, as the head of the Parliament, to be a champion for ensuring that as we go into elections in all of our countries, we have a minimum of 30 per cent representation of women,” she said.

Speaking Earlier, Tunis said Sirleef’s position as first female President in Africa is a precedent set by the West African region which must be sustained.

He also applauded Liberia for being a model of women empowerment to other African countries.

The Speaker said the resolutions from the delocalized meeting, which was a success, would be forwarded to Sirleef.

“We have been here for about a week now at the delocalized meeting with the theme empowerment of women in the ECOWAS Sub-region.

“We believe that your election as the first female President in Africa and just a few years down the line the election of Her Excellency Joy Taylor as Vice President demonstrates the fact that Liberia is already a model in women empowerment.

“You have already demonstrated it and throughout your tenure as President of Liberia you did everything possible to empower women and to promote women.

“So we believe that if we are having a meeting of such nature in Liberia, our first point of call should be here. “We waited to finish the session to bring the resolution to you as soon as that is done you will receive it.

“We have had a very fruitful meeting, the presentations from the experts were excellent and I must say we are very elated about that to chart a way forward to women’s empowerment in the sub-region,” Tunis said.

 

By Nicholas Kalu, Abuja

Since Brig Gen Buba Marwa assumed office as the new chairman of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), about three months ago, it is starkly clear there is something different about the agency.

From headlines across various news outlets on a string of major drug busts and arrests to a surge in activities at their Gimbiya Street Headquarters in Abuja, it is easy to tell there is more verve.

Activities seemed to have picked up with a frenzy that sharply contrasted with a lethargy that seemed to have enveloped the essence of the anti-drug agency before now. Things are not as they used to be at the NDLEA.

On his first day in office on January 18, 2021, Marwa had already started wielding the big stick. It would no longer be business as usual he had warned everyone involved in the illicit drug business.

He had said the agency would be overhauled and expanded, in line with the recommendations of the Presidential Advisory Committee for the Elimination of Drug Abuse (PACEDA).

The new chairman, who had served as chairman of PACEDA, said it will also be within existing financial constraints, and the authorization of the appropriate superior authorities.

Marwa had said the number of drug users in Nigeria today is over 15 million people, across all ages, adding that the problem has eaten very deeply into the social fabric as every community in Nigeria is affected.

He said as a lead agency in the drug war in Nigeria, they were familiar with the extent of the devastation that drug use has caused the nation, and vowed to resuscitate and reposition NDLEA to full active life, to be effective, respected and feared by concerned criminals.

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Many stakeholders had upon Marwa’s assumption of office stakeholders had welcomed the development, describing him as a square peg in a square hole.

For instance, the African Council on Narcotics has lauded the appointment, describing it as “one of the best national appointments that has been made by the present administration.”

President of the Council, Rekpene Bassey, in a statement in Abuja said it was an appointment well deserved given Marwa’s known track record of excellent performance in previous national appointments.

“While we feel certain that your present position will not be an  exception, we note here the assurances of our prayers, trusting God will help you succeed in the massive task ahead considering the frightening increase in the illicit drug problem in our country. Needless to say, we will be more than delighted to work with your good self on this onerous task in the hope that you will leave the NDLEA better than you met it,” Bassey had said.

Marwa, it appeared, hit the ground running by summoning Commanders of the agency in all the states of the federation and special commands with marching orders to mop up illicit drugs across the country.

He went ahead to distribute operational vehicles that had been lying fallow at the agency’s headquarters for a long time, to some states that needed them.

A flurry of drug busts and arrests on a scale hitherto absent had followed in the first month of his assumption of office.

Seeming to want to identify with a more proactive spirit, various international organizations had already pledged their cooperation to the agency to achieve its mandate. Various alliances – national and international -have also been pursued by the Agency towards fighting the battle against drugs.

Still in the spirit of building alliances towards the ultimate aim of ridding the country of the menace of drug abuse, Marwa recently visited the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, in Abuja, to explore areas of collaboration.

In the meeting, the NDLEA Boss pointed out that as much as the agency’s efforts were disrupting the drug supply chain through law enforcement, they also needed to be more proactive and work hard on drug demand reduction through advocacy programmes, which are mostly publicity driven.

The visit, he said, was to leverage on the Minister’s position to drive their advocacy programmes at little or no cost because it is well known that the NDLEA has over the years been left behind in terms of funding among other law enforcement agencies including those established years after them.

Marwa however noted that despite their constraints, the Agency has in less than three months with him on the saddle, been able to seize drugs and cash worth over N75 billion.

Within the period 2,175 drug traffickers had been arrested while 2,050,766.33 kilogrammes of assorted illicit drugs had been seized. Also 2,000 drug cases had been filed in court with 329 convictions and 1,549 pending cases, he revealed.

“These figures are less than what could have been on the streets destroying the lives of innocent youths, our women and men. With the support of your office and those of your agencies, we’ll be able to save millions of Nigerians from being afflicted with the menace of drug abuse,” Marwa said.

The NDLEA boss acknowledged the efforts of the Minister and leading agencies under him, in promoting the good work of the federal government and the country as a whole.

“No doubt, the Minister’s current role is central to all key activities of government and the agenda of the President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration, especially with key information dissemination media outlets like the Nigeria Television Authority (NTA), the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN), the Voice of Nigeria (VON) and more under the supervision of the Honourable Minister,” he said.

He acknowledged that even without any prompting from the Minister, these agencies have been of tremendous support since he came on board.

He said Nigeria is faced with a major drug crisis that is in no small way fueling most of the security challenges being faced in the North East, North West, North Central and indeed across the country.

He noted that recently, through intelligence based operations, they were able to arrest some drug traffickers – one a Nigerien and another a Chadian in Niger state and Taraba state respectively – who supplied illicit drugs to insurgents and bandits.

He again stressed the need to proactively combat the problem not just through enforcement but through advocacy.

“For instance, we need to run a weekly 30mins network programme on NTA and Radio Nigeria to reach Nigerians on the dangers of drug abuse; we need to reach those at the grassroots with our messages in various Nigerian languages packaged in jingles; we need coverage of our programmes to promote the coming World Drug Day on June 26 and others.

“We don’t have the resources to pay for all of these and this is why we need partnership with the Ministry of Information and its Agencies to be able to reach millions of Nigerians and save them from the drug scourge,” Marwa appealed.

The Minister, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, who assured the agency of support, commended Marwa for his impressive string of achievements, in less than three months of assuming office.

“These achievements, I am reliably informed, include restoring the visibility of the NDLEA for local and international partnership; boosting the morale and confidence of staffers; attracting international support and ‘offensive action’ against drug cartels

that has led to the arrest of 2,175 drug traffickers, seizure of 2,050,765.33 kilogrammes of illicit drugs as well as cash and drug seizures worth N75 billion,” Mohammed said.

Mohammed said the war against illicit drugs and tackling drug trafficking is one of the most important tasks in the country.

This he said is because drug trafficking, money laundering by traffickers and the use of illicit drugs are closely linked to the nation’s security, well being of the citizens, the moral fabric of our society and even governance.

“It is common knowledge that drug money can be used to finance insurgency and terrorism. A successful fight against drug trafficking will therefore help to deny or reduce funding for insurgency.

“The kind of vicious banditry and kidnapping for ransom that our country has witnessed in recent times cannot be totally separated from illicit drug use and their effects on users who take to crime

“Drug trafficking proceeds are sometimes invested into legitimate businesses, making hard working and honest people look indolent.

“What about the effect of drug trafficking on the moral fabric of the society. This society rarely questions the source or sources of people’s wealth. That’s why drug traffickers end up becoming role models in the society, with devastating consequences for our young ones.

“Even governance is not spared. Drug traffickers and money launderers contest and win elections into high offices, where they help shape policy. Just imagine the damage this can do to governance and indeed to any nation.

“This is why I want to once again commend Gen. Marwa for raising the bar in the fight against drug cartels and the use of illicit drugs with the new maxim, ‘offensive action’.

“The Federal Ministry of Information and Culture will work with you to give maximum publicity to your activities, especially in the area of advocacy. To date, we have launched a number of national campaigns. It will not be a bad idea for the Ministry, working with the NDLEA, to launch a national campaign against drug trafficking and use of illicit drugs.

“I will also encourage the NDLEA to work with the National Orientation Agency (NOA), which has set up Integrity Clubs in Secondary Schools nationwide, to reach the young ones with its campaign against drug use,” he said.