NWDC, Kano Task Force Move to Tackle Drug Abuse, Insecurity in North-West
The North-West Development Commission (NWDC) has expressed readiness to collaborate with the Kano State Multi-Agency Task Force on Drug Abuse and Illicit Practices to combat drug abuse and its associated security challenges across the region.
The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Commission, Prof. Shehu Abdullahi Ma’aji, made the commitment when the task force, led by its Chairman, Barrister Muhiyi Magaji Rimingado, paid a courtesy visit to the NWDC management on Wednesday.
Ma’aji described drug abuse as a major driver of insecurity, poverty and youth restiveness in the North-West, warning that the region’s development objectives could be undermined if urgent measures were not taken to address the problem.
“The North-West cannot achieve its development goals if a generation of our young people is lost to drug abuse. The data before us is alarming, and the link between drug abuse and the rise in gun violence is now clear to all of us,” he said.
Briefing the Commission, Rimingado said the task force had conducted more than 200 raids across vulnerable communities within 45 days of its inauguration, resulting in over 200 convictions.
According to him, some of those convicted were sentenced to as much as 10 years in prison, while the operations also led to the recovery of weapons and other exhibits.
He added that 120 of the most vulnerable offenders were currently undergoing rehabilitation at two correctional and reformatory centres.
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Rimingado said the Kano State Government had adopted a two-pronged approach involving aggressive law enforcement and mass rehabilitation to address drug abuse and illicit activities.
“Government did not set up this committee only to arrest and prosecute. If we jail them for 10 years and release them back to the streets with no reform, we have achieved nothing.
“That is why we are removing the most vulnerable from the streets and putting them in reformatories,” he said.
Responding, Ma’aji said the NWDC would seek to integrate drug prevention, rehabilitation and youth empowerment into its regional development blueprint covering Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Sokoto and Zamfara states.
“At NWDC, our mandate is to rebuild the North-West. That means building infrastructure, but also rebuilding people. We will work with the Task Force and other stakeholders to expand rehabilitation centres, provide skills acquisition, and create jobs as alternatives to crime,” he said.
The NWDC boss commended the Kano State Governor, Abba Kabir Yusuf, for supporting the Commission and establishing the multi-agency task force to address drug abuse in the state.
Ma’aji described the initiative as evidence of the governor’s commitment to youth welfare and development.
The Commission also called on traditional rulers, religious leaders, civil society organisations and parents to strengthen their involvement in preventing drug abuse, stressing that security and development must be pursued simultaneously.
Established to drive infrastructure development, human capital investment and peace-building initiatives across the seven North-West states, the NWDC said addressing the underlying social and economic factors contributing to drug abuse would remain central to sustainable regional development.
By PRNigeria
