The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency , NDLEA, has said that it is not comfortable with options of fines being handed out as punishment to drug traffickers and their agents in the country.
It said it prefers strict imprisonment that would deter others from the heinous crimes.
The agency said that experience has shown that options of fines in place of outright imprisonment has not detered drug traffickers from the heinous crimes, hence, the growth in the illicit substance abuse.
Chairman of the NDLEA, Brigadier General Buba Marwa ( rtd) who made this known on Tuesday in Abuja pleaded with the Chief Judge and Judges of the Federal High Court to always consider strict imprisonment for drug offenders who do not deserve mercy of the law.
He spoke at the unveiling of National Minimum Standards on the Implementation of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015 and the Administration of Criminal Justice Laws of the 36 states.
At the moment, General Marwa revealed that Nigeria has over 10 million cannabis users which according to him, was very worrisome.
In the past five years, he said that the agency made a seizure of about 15 million kilograms of assorted illicit substance out of which between 70 to 75 percent was cannabis.
The worrisome situation, he said forced NDLEA under his personal intervention, to meet cannabis growers especially in Ondo state to enlighten them to stop growing indian hemps and embrace legitimate growing of food and cash crops that would make life meaningful for them and others.
He noted with satisfaction that the efforts have been yielding fruitful results with positive response from the fields.
General Marwa said that hundreds of farmers opting out of cannabis growing would not only have sustainable means of legitimate livelihoods but would no longer live with fears of possible arrest and prosecution by the NDLEA.
He thanked the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice for quick responses to NDLEA issues as well as the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court.
In a welcome address at the occasion, the Director, Administration of Criminal Justice Reform and Development Development, Federal Ministry of Justice, Mrs Leticia Ayoola Daniels said implementation National Minimum Standards (2025) would tremendously improve justice delivery in the country .
She said the occasion
represented the culmination of years of deliberate, intentional, collaborative and painstaking efforts to strengthen the Administration of Criminal Justice System in Nigeria through the institutionalization of Restorative Justice as a viable and effective complement to conventional justice processes.
The National Minimum Standards (2025), she said, established the operational benchmarks required to institutionalize Restorative Justice in Nigeria, ensuring that its implementation aligns with global best practices while remaining responsive to our local realities.
According to her, the Harmonized Restorative Justice Training Curriculum and Manual (2025), on the other hand, is designed to provide a comprehensive framework for training facilitators, ensuring consistency in practice, and promoting professionalism in the delivery of Restorative Justice processes across jurisdictions.
The achievements of the reform, the Director also said, “would not have been possible without the leadership and unwavering support of the AGF, Prince Lateef Fagbemi SAN, whose commitment to justice sector reforms continues to drive innovation and progress in the justice sector”.