The Federal House of Representatives will soon consider a bill seeking to empower the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) to carry out compulsory and routine drug tests on those seeking election into public offices.
The bill will also subject all serving and intending security personnel as well as candidates seeking admissions into tertiary institutions in Nigeria to mandatory checks on drugs.
The proposed bill will be sponsored by the Chairman, House Committee on Narcotic Drugs, Honourable Francis Ottah
In a statement signed by his media aide Andrew Agbese Monday, the lawmaker said the menace of drug addiction has pervaded all segments of the society and only drug integrity tests on people in critical service sectors can sanitize the system.
Honourable Ottah noted that the misbehavior of some political office holders as well as most of the crimes committed in society is drug-induced.
He stressed that this would have been avoided if those involved had been ascertained free from illicit drugs.
According to him, “I’m proposing a bill to empower the NDLEA to carry out a mandatory and routine drug test on politicians seeking public offices, top public servants, military and paramilitary officers and men, and for youths seeking admission into higher institutions.
This will check excesses, madness in the country and sanitize the system.
“Narcotic drug addiction is common among our people across the board; from secondary schools to the universities; from North to South; from politicians to the civil servants etc. Indeed, Nigeria is the highest abuser of illicit drugs and cannabis is the most abused drug in our country.”
