LSSTF-CACCOV, NDLEA Deepen Partnership to Combat Drug Abuse, Strengthen Youth Development

 LSSTF-CACCOV, NDLEA Deepen Partnership to Combat Drug Abuse, Strengthen Youth Development

The Lagos State Security Trust Fund’s Campaign Against Crime, Cultism and Other Vices (LSSTF-CACCOV) and the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Lagos Strategic Command, have commenced a strategic partnership to intensify the fight against drug abuse and trafficking, with particular focus on young people and vulnerable communities.

The partnership was discussed during a courtesy visit by the LSSTF-CACCOV State Coordinator, Dr. Moses Oladimeji, to the NDLEA Lagos Strategic Headquarters in Ikoyi, where both organisations agreed on the need for stronger preventive interventions alongside enforcement operations.

The engagement underscored the growing recognition that Nigeria’s drug problem requires a comprehensive approach involving enforcement, public education, rehabilitation, community engagement and youth empowerment.

Speaking during the visit, Oladimeji said the volume of narcotics seized and destroyed by the NDLEA in Lagos highlighted the scale of the challenge and the urgent need for coordinated action by government agencies and other stakeholders.

He recalled attending an NDLEA event where drugs worth more than N3.1 billion were destroyed, saying the experience reinforced his concern about the extent of drug trafficking and its implications for public safety.

“When you see the amount of drugs that was piled up to be burnt, you begin to ask yourself: where are these things coming from, and how are we going to solve this issue? It shows that this problem is a major one for us, and we have to address it,” Oladimeji said.

According to him, drug abuse is closely associated with insecurity, violent crime, cultism and the loss of productive potential among young people.

He stressed that efforts to tackle the menace must therefore go beyond arrests and prosecution to include sustained awareness campaigns, behavioural change initiatives and the provision of positive alternatives for young people.

“If the issue of drugs can be tackled, then the issue of insecurity and crime will be reduced to the barest minimum. That is why we must take these messages to every nook and cranny—schools, campuses, communities, religious gatherings, motor parks and other places where young people gather,” he said.

Oladimeji disclosed that LSSTF-CACCOV, since its establishment on February 28, had taken its preventive campaign to institutions including Yaba College of Technology and the Federal College of Education (Technical), Akoka, reaching more than 3,000 students through sensitisation and engagement programmes.

He explained that the organisation’s non-kinetic approach was built around empathy, education and meaningful engagement rather than condemnation.

The coordinator called for closer collaboration with the NDLEA, including the participation of the agency’s personnel in LSSTF-CACCOV programmes and the documentation of successful rehabilitation stories to encourage individuals battling addiction to seek professional help.

He proposed that people who had successfully overcome drug addiction through NDLEA-supported rehabilitation programmes should be identified and their recovery journeys documented and shared as part of joint advocacy initiatives.

According to him, presenting such stories at platforms such as the LSSTF Town Hall Meeting would demonstrate that recovery was possible while also drawing greater attention to the rehabilitation work being carried out by the NDLEA.

Responding, the Commander of the NDLEA Lagos Strategic Command, Assistant Commander General of Narcotics, ACGN Abubakar Liman Wali, welcomed the initiative and explained that Lagos had been upgraded from a state command to a strategic command because of its importance to Nigeria’s drug-control efforts.

Wali said Lagos’ position as the country’s commercial hub, with major seaports, airports and border routes, made it particularly strategic in the fight against illicit drug trafficking.

“Looking at Lagos as the commercial hub, with a lot of seaports, airports and border ports, and the bulk of drugs coming through these routes, the Chairman, Brig. Gen. Mohammed Buba Marwa (retd), deemed it necessary to upgrade Lagos State to a Strategic Command headed by an Assistant Commander General of Narcotics,” he explained.

He said tackling drug trafficking and abuse in Lagos would have a significant impact on the wider national drug-control campaign.

Wali further explained that the NDLEA under the leadership of its Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brigadier-General Mohamed Buba Marwa (retd.), had expanded its operations beyond enforcement to include prevention, sensitisation, rehabilitation and demand reduction.

“Before the coming of the present Chairman, what NDLEA had done was largely to arrest, prosecute and carry out enforcement activities. But now, we are into sensitisation, rehabilitation and prevention. That is the aspect he has given priority,” Wali said.

He described prevention as a more sustainable approach to drug control, noting that early education could help prevent individuals from developing addiction and reduce the cost associated with rehabilitation and recovery.

“Prevention is less costly. When somebody becomes addicted, you will spend more. But with a little awareness, people can be educated about the implications of what they are taking,” he added.

Wali also disclosed that the Lagos Strategic Command was facing operational challenges, revealing that only six NDLEA operational vehicles were currently functional in the state, with three provided through the Lagos State Security Trust Fund.

He appealed for continued institutional support to strengthen patrol operations, intelligence gathering and community-based interventions.

The NDLEA commander also encouraged LSSTF-CACCOV to collaborate with the agency on campus security training and programmes involving school administrators, counsellors, psychologists and student-led advocacy clubs.

He noted that young people were often more receptive to preventive messages when such messages were delivered by their peers.

Wali disclosed that each NDLEA area command in Lagos was expected to conduct at least 10 sensitisation programmes every month across schools, faith-based organisations, communities and marketplaces.

He consequently invited LSSTF-CACCOV personnel to participate in the programmes, describing the partnership as an opportunity for both organisations to combine expertise and expand the reach of their preventive interventions.

The meeting reinforced the need for a coordinated approach to drug abuse as a public health, security and development challenge, with stakeholders emphasising the roles of families, schools, religious institutions, communities, government agencies and civil society organisations in prevention, early intervention, rehabilitation and reintegration.

Other members of the NDLEA Lagos Strategic Command management team at the meeting included the Deputy State Commander, CN James Akogwu Elayoni; Deputy Commander, Operations and Training, CN Adisa Bolaji Toyin; Deputy Commander, Administration and Logistics, DCN MS Abba; Assistant State Commander, Financial Investigation, DCN Ali Bulama; and Chief of Staff, ACN EE Ukpong.

Members of the LSSTF-CACCOV team included the Assistant State Coordinator, Mrs. Uzezi Akinwoleola; Head, Human Resources and Training, Prominence Promise; Head, Education, Advocacy and Empowerment, Joseph Akinwoleola; Head, Strategy, Digital Communication and Technology, Olugbogi Nathanael; and Head of Programmes and Outreaches, Meshole Emmanuel.