Peace Oladapo 
The Commander of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Obot Bassey on Tuesday revealed that the operatives have secured 68 convictions and rehabilitated 12 individuals in the state in 2023.
Speaking during a news conference in Uyo, the state capital, Bassey revealed that the state command detained 195 suspects, including 159 males and 36 girls, and seized drugs worth millions of naira.
She said: “For the year 2023 just ended, the Akwa Ibom Command recorded the following achievements: arrested 195 suspects, comprising 159 males and 36 females, recorded drug seizures totaling 1,267.244 kg, secured 68 convictions and all of them are serving jail terms in our custodial centres.”
She further added: “Compared with the statistics of 2022, it is obvious that the command had a better achievement in 2023. With a seizure of 460.344kg of drugs in 2022 and 1,267.244 in 2023, there is a 175 per cent increase in the seizures recorded.
“The implication of the prevalence of these hard drugs in Akwa Ibom State is the spike in criminal activities such as frequent cult clashes, youth unrest, daring armed robbery cases, kidnapping, militancy, and the like.”
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Bassey, who highlighted that Akwa Ibom is primarily a consumer/transit state with drug traffickers attempting to litter the streets with illicit narcotics, said the NDLEA would continue to work with sister agencies in the state to combat the drug problem.
“The State Command is still faced with challenges ranging from the need for operational vehicles to effectively and efficiently cover the 31 local government areas of the state. The Command is also in need of barracks for the safety of our officers,” she said.
