The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA), has warned against violent attacks targeting operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), calling for a halt.
According to the association, the violent attacks portends the danger of compromising the country’s anti-drugs war campaign.
The agency says the campaign is becoming increasingly dangerous for frontline officers, singling out for condemnation, the recent mob attack on NDLEA personnel during an anti-narcotics operation in the Dawaki area of the Federal Capital Territory.
In a statement signed by its National Coordinator, Emmanuel Onwubiko, HURIWA said that particular attack which reportedly left two officers critically injured, was a disturbing sign of the growing boldness of drug syndicates and criminal gangs operating across the country.
The injured officers – Ayegh Dooyun Zachariah and Shehu Jamil Ibrahim, are currently receiving treatment at the National Hospital, Abuja.
Stating that incidents like the above should no longer be treated as isolated criminal incidents but as direct threats to national security and public safety, it added:
“The frightening escalation of violent attacks against NDLEA operatives by criminal drug syndicates and their collaborators is a dangerous signal that the anti-drug war is becoming increasingly deadly,” the group stated.
It linked drug trafficking and substance abuse as major drivers of insecurity, terrorism, kidnapping, armed robbery, cultism, and gang violence across Nigeria.
HURIWA, however, commended the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NDLEA, Mohamed Buba Marwa, for personally visiting the injured officers and assuring them of medical support and institutional backing.
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“The visit by General Marwa to the wounded officers is highly symbolic and deeply commendable. It demonstrates responsible leadership and sends a morale-boosting signal to personnel risking their lives daily to save Nigeria from the catastrophic consequences of narcotics abuse and trafficking,” the statement added.
In the midst of violent attacks against NDLEA and its operatives the organisation urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to establish a Special NDLEA Hazard Trust Fund to support officers injured or killed during anti-narcotics operations.
Families of officers killed in active service should receive immediate compensation, while injured officers should have access to lifetime medical care, rehabilitation, and insurance coverage funded through the proposed trust fund, the organization also suggested.
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