The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) said it recovered illicit drugs from the personal house of Kwara South Senator, Oyeyola Ashiru, attributing the lawmaker’s recent outburst against the agency to this.
The Senator during plenary on October 15 said: “The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency is corrupt and compromised…” calling for the establishment of another anti-drug agency.
But the chairman of the agency, Brig Gen Buba Marwa (Rtd), during a briefing on Monday, said the Senator’s outburst was borne out of vendetta rather than based on any altruistic motive or national interest.
Represented by the Director, Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, Marwa said the agency remains undeterred as it will continue to dismantle illicit drug networks including the one operating in the lawmaker’s house.
Babafemi was in the company of NDLEA Area Commander, Offa Area Commander, Kwara State, Ayodeji Olaoluwa and the Officer in charge of Special Enforcement, Kwara State Command during the briefing.
Responding to the accusation, Marwa said: “While acknowledging the great work of the Senate towards the upliftment of Nigeria and Nigerians especially their support for the ongoing concerted efforts towards the amendment of the NDLEA Act, the Agency however is duty-bound to respond to the unprovoked attack against it by Senator Ashiru during his contribution to the debate on a new bill for an Act to establish the National Institute for Drug Awareness and Rehabilitation on Tuesday, October 15, 2024.”
He said the agency waited for a whole week hoping the lawmaker will clarify his position on such a weighty allegation against it but failing to do that, it is left with “no option than to come out and set the record straight for the benefit of other distinguished members of the Senate, our local and international partners as well as the general public.”
He continued: “There is no doubt that setting up another agency is within the power of the Senate and if we are invited to contribute to the debate we will be willing to offer our opinion.
“While we cannot fault the power of the senate on that, yet for a member of the upper chamber to have made such an unfounded and unwarranted categorical statement against the agency led us to look inward to see what could have been responsible for such a carpeting general statement.
“What we found was shocking, and we concluded that his statement came from a place of vendetta and certainly not out of public interest or any altruistic motive.
“The personal house of the senator in GRA Ilorin, the capital of Kwara State, had been raided in the recent past, where drugs and illicit substances were recovered while two of his aides: Ibrahim Mohammed and Muhammed Yahaya were arrested.
”Based on credible intelligence and surveillance which confirmed that the senator’s house was being used as a drug joint for drug dealers and users, the house was raided by our operatives at 1:30pm on February 4, 2024 during which the two aides were arrested, while a third suspect escaped arrest.
“In another encounter with the senator, the Agency also received intelligence that some of his boys popularly known as ‘Omo Senator’ operating from his hometown, Offa, were equally dealing in illicit drugs. A raid was subsequently carried out on their joint in Offa where one of them, Oluwatosin Odepidan was arrested and illicit drugs such as methamphetamine and cannabis recovered from him on June 11, 2023.
“The bid to get the Agency drop the case against Odepidan including a visit to the Kwara State Command headquarters of the Agency in Ilorin by the Personal Assistant to the senator, one Omoluabi, was rebuffed as Odepidan was promptly charged to court and prosecuted.