Drug Abuse Responsible For Herdsmen Attacks – Minister

Abdulrahman Dambazau, the Minister of Interior, has attributed the Fulani herdsmen attacks in the country to “drug abuse and proliferation of arms”.Speaking during a meeting with heads of internal security agencies on Tuesday, Dambazua said increased drug abuse and arms proliferation in the country were critical issues that needed urgent attention in order to tackle the herdsmen crisis.

“One of the issues that came up in the communiqué was the issue of the proliferation of small arms and drug trafficking and abuse. We also found out that these two issues are triggers to the violence taking place in this country,” said the minister.

Dambazua said with approximately 500 million assorted firearms in West Africa, of which 350 million are in Nigeria, the country was at the mercy of hoodlums who are wrongfully in possession of the weapons.

The minister equally expressed fear that as the 2019 elections draw nearer, the country may record more violence if the arms are not mopped up.

“The situation is worsened by the insurgency in the North-East because of the supply of weapons to the insurgents and terrorists there.

“Likewise the supply of weapons to the militants in the Niger Delta through the exchange of stolen crude oil and supply by politicians to deal with their opponents.

“If we don’t do something now, I am afraid things would be worse than this.”

Among the security agencies represented at the meeting were the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), Nigeria Police, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), and the Department of State Services (DSS).

Others were the National Intelligence Agency (NIA), Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).