National Drugs Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) in Cross River says it arrested 200 suspects for various drug related offences in 2016.

State Commander of NDLEA, Antonia Edeh said out of this number, 178 were males while 22 were females, adding that a total of 475.7058Kg of hard drugs was seized from the suspects.

According to her, Cannabis sativa topped the recovered drugs with 298.436kg; Psychotropic substance 1.082kg; Cocaine 0.004kg; Heroin 0.0278kg; Ephedrine 100.100kg; and Methamphetamine 75,050kg.

During the period under review, 4.2 hectares of Cannabis sativa farms were destroyed at Odukpani and Ikom Local Government Areas of the state.

Also, 22 drug suspects were convicted by the Federal High Court Calabar, with various jail terms ranging from six months to 10 years, while some others are currently standing trial, ‘’ she said.

The commander said, 95 drug-dependent persons were counseled and reunited with their families.

She appealed to members of the public to cooperate with the agency in ridding the state of illicit drugs by providing useful information to the agency.

The command also expressed appreciation to the state government for its continued support to the agency and appealed for the establishment of drug rehabilitation centres in the state.

She further enjoined members of the public to shun the use of hard drugs, saying that, it was detrimental to the growth of any society.