NDLEA’s diving capability will discourage large cocaine shipments to Nigeria – Marwa

By Adeyanju Esther

Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, Brig Gen Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd) has said that the recent training and certification of officers of the Marine Command of NDLEA in basic diving, advanced open water diving and full-face mask diving will discourage large shipments of cocaine to Nigeria.

This announcement was made on Tuesday in a statement by Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi.

According to Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig Gen Mohamed Buba Marwa, the training will discourage large shipments of cocaine to Nigeria.

Marwa emphasised that the new diving skills will make it harder for international drug cartels to hide illegal drugs on ships coming to Nigeria.

The training, which took place in Bombinhas City, Brazil, was initiated by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) to strengthen the fight against drug trafficking and transnational crime activities in four countries, including Nigeria.

Eight officers from the four countries, including two from Nigeria, were selected for the certification training.

Marwa praised the two NDLEA officers who participated in the training for their exemplary performance, saying their new ability to dive into the sea to search ship hulls will discourage global drug networks from attempting to send large consignments to Nigeria.

He assured that NDLEA will continue to advance in skills and technology to stay ahead of drug cartels and prevent drug smuggling into Nigeria.

“We will also continue to expose our officers, men and women to training and the use of modern technological tools in our determined bid to keep our country safe by curbing the menace of substance abuse and illicit drug trafficking,” Marwa added.