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By Kelechi Esogwa-Amadi
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested three persons in connection with the seizure of 7.5 kilogrammes of cocaine in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital.
The agency’s director of prosecution and legal services, Barr Sunday Mbona, who represented the chairman, chief executive of NDLEA, Col. Mohammad Mustapha Abdallah (rtd) disclosed this Wednesday at the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) Port Harcourt.
Mbona said the successful seizure of the harmful substance was due to effective surveillance, intelligence report and proactive disposition of the NDLEA.
The feat, he noted, was the first of its kind in the existence of NPA Port in Port Harcourt, adding that the laxity at the port created room for the suspects to attempt to smuggle the seized cocaine through that route.
“It must be emphasized that this seizure is the first of its kind in the existence of the NPA Port in Port Harcourt. The significance of this is that no entry point of the country is free from the activities and calculations of criminal elements, particularly illicit traffickers of drugs, in our society. They are continuously searching for, and targeting weaknesses in our national security and law enforcement systems, in terms of place and time, to perpetrate their nefarious activities.
“The choice of the NPA Port in Port Harcourt to smuggle the seized cocaine must have been deliberate based on their observed/perceived laxity at the Port but for the vigilance, dexterity and proactive disposition of the NDLEA and its personnel.
“It must however be pointed out that it will be difficult for the country to benefit from the effectiveness of a repositioned proactive NDLEA if the current moves to push the Agency out of the nation’s Ports is allowed to succeed,” he said.
