The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, and the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria, ALGON, have agreed to work together to curb the menace of substance abuse and illicit drug trafficking in communities across the country.

The agreements were reached at a meeting of ALGON Leaders who visited NDLEA Chairman/Chief Executive Officer, retired Brigadier General Buba Marwa at the Agency’s headquarters in Abuja.

Addressing the ALGON leaders, Marwa expressed the preparedness of NDLEA to work with the council chairmen to ensure people at the grassroots are well sensitised about the dangers of abusing illicit drugs and provide help for those already indulging in the unhealthy habit.

According to Marwa, the agency is particularly happy that ALGON which is the umbrella body of local government chairmen has come to identify, work and partner with NDLEA as the closest tier of government to the people especially the grassroots and communities where majority of Nigerians reside.

In his words, this is more so because the drug scourge is in virtually all communities, no community across the country is spared and as such, there is need for partnership to cascade all efforts in terms of drug demand reduction and even the supply reduction, down to the remote communities.

He said the partnership is also important coming at a time when the agency is deploying personnels to the local government areas to establish physical presence in the rural communities to support the local councils to curb the scourge of drug abuse and illicit drug dealing, which fuel crimes and criminalities in the areas.

Marwa encouraged the ALGON leaders to mobilise their members nationwide to set up local government drug control committees and war against drug abuse, WADA committees comprising traditional rulers, community gatekeepers, opinion, religious leaders, market and women groups, among others at the community level.

According to him, the committees similar to what obtains at the national and state levels will work with NDLEA commands to coordinate the fight against the drug menace in the communities.

He encouraged them to also take advocacy and drug test as major components of their efforts when they return to their local governments to begin implementation of the various strategies discussed at the meeting.

The NDLEA Chief added that to make drug test easier, the agency has mass produced quality test kits easy to use at home, offices and others with the aim of early detection and providing treatment for those who test positive and engendering deterrence.

In his remark, the ALGON National President, Aminu Maitafa lamented the negative impact of drug abuse on the health, businesses and security of lives and property at the grassroots, expressing the commitment of the body to work with NDLEA to ensure the ugly development is urgently reversed.

Maitafa said ALGON appreciate the enormous work which NDLEA is doing under the leadership of the retired Brigadier General which is why the body have come to partner with the agency so as to collectively stamp out the drug abuse problem from communities.

He assured that they will emplace necessary structures that will facilitate the deployment of NDLEA personnel to their council areas.

According to NDLEA Director Media and Advocacy Femi Babafemi, other ALGON leaders at the meeting include: Director General Itiako Ikpokpo, National Publicity Secretary Bala Chamo, National Welfare Officer Aminu Hassan, National Auditor Adamu Bukar, and Chief of Staff to the National President Shehu Jega.