By Ekamma UBA, Senior Staff Investigator Writer, Lagos.
STAFF of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency NDLEA seemed to be unrelenting in their call for the sacking of their Chairman, Muhammad Mustapha Abdallah as the unfolding scenario clearly suggests. The staff under the aegis of ‘Concerned Staff’ had last month petitioned President Muhammadu Buhari complaining bitterly that Muhammad Abdallah be summarily sacked for gross and irreconcilable corruption; threatening that if that was not done, they would vote against the President come 2019 general elections. That call, it seems has yet to be acted upon as a recent petition also addressed to the President and copied the national chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress, Comrade Adams Oshiomohle in addition to accusing Abdallah of incompetence and maladministration also said the nation’s anti-narcotic agency had lost more staff within the period of Abdallah’s reign. The recent petition which was tagged ‘Save the soul of NDLEA from Abdallah” signed by Musa Ahmed Yusuf and made available to CrimeWorld, observed that NDLEA have never had it this bad since it began operations about 29 years ago. According to the petition, “It is pressing for you Mr. President to prove your love for the youths of our beloved country Nigeria by putting an end to the reign of terror and shame in the NDLEA. Muhammad Mustapha Abdallah is one regrettable appointment of the ruling All Progressive Congress party due to his lack of direction, greed and corrupt tendencies that is driving the Agency into oblivion. Abdallah has demonstrated an extraordinary level of indifference to the rising rate of drug and substance abuse among the youths of our country. He has completely abandoned staff welfare, promotion and the war against drug barons. His stock in trade is the illegal diversion of the statutory allocation of the Agency to selfish and unproductive foreign travels. Mr President, we have confidence in you but it is important for you to identify and eliminate bad eggs like Abdallah with a high tendency to derail your second term bid.”
Highlighting the ineptitude of Abdllah in nearly all sphere as head of the agency, the petitioner noted, “In Administration, Abdallah’s interest in stagnating officers in one rank has defied all administrative explanations. An average officer has three promotion arrears yet he is complacent. This has left officers traumatized and psychologically disadvantaged to confront drug barons. Abdallah blatantly refused to conduct promotion for officers who are long overdue in one rank. The 1,311 list of officers promoted in July 2018 is a ruse on the public. The affected officers could not celebrate because they joined the service six years ago and by the NDLEA regulations they are due for two promotions. Rather than give them double promotion, Abdallah gave only one promotion with effect from January 2018. The implication is that they are to forfeit the balance of 3 years of service to the callousness of Abdallah? This is sickening and highly disgusting. He also deliberately did not promote other officers who have three promotion arrears. Abdallah is one mistake too many. He is the only Chairman since inception that comes to work two or three times in a month and that is when allocation is released. This is horrible for an Agency saddled with the very important function of drug control. The purported relocation of NDLEA headquarters from Lagos to Abuja by Abdallah is a big fraud. First, the Abuja office is yet to be furnished, the officers that moved to Abuja have not been given an allowance and the Ikoyi office has suffered power cut for over two years. Aside this, Abdallah is operational ineffective. There has been a sharp decline in the number of drugs seized since Abdallah took over in 2016. In 2015 the agency seized drugs weighing 903,624.56kg but when Abdallah took over in 2016, it drastically plummeted to 263,947.57kg and 309.713kg in 2016. His strategy of lack of promotion, poor welfare and lack of running cost to State commands is a grand plan to stagnate officers, demoralise and make them unable to launch attacks on drug barons. His secret romance with drug barons is weird. The Agency today has been reduced to petty raids on small-time cannabis dealers. Major cocaine, heroin and methamphetamine operations are now memories of the past. The frenzy of clamping down on clandestine laboratories that produce methamphetamine as well as the large quantity of cocaine and heroin seizures at the seaports is now history. Drug barons are celebrating a great season of boom under Abdallah. Muhammad Abdallah is also finically reckless. The monthly allocation of the Agency is about 48 million naira. This has been going into the private pockets of Abdallah for the past three years under the guise of flimsy foreign travels. Abdallah travels almost every month and he can attend a mere drug abuse workshop in London and United States but will never visit the relatives of officers attacked and killed in the line of duty. The sum of fifty thousand naira (N50,000) only given to families of three officers; Onwumere Nicholas, Peter Ebun and Abdulrahman Musa who were shot dead in Kogi State on October 13, 2017, by gunmen is still fresh in our memory. As we write, Abdallah is yet to provide succour to the families. This is highly insensitive. Over 60 officers have died under Abdallah, this is the highest number of mortality since the Agency was founded. The most painful aspect is that none of these heroes has been paid their entitlement yet he is the most travelled Chairman. His level of corruption is simply unprecedented.
The Way Forward: We are calling for the immediate sack, probe and prosecution of Abdallah. We demand immediate verification of every allegation, the lack of promotion of officers, the lack of payment of overhead cost to commands since 2016, illegal and incessant foreign travels, the non payment of benefits to dead officers, the tacit lack of attack on drug barons, poor attendance of 2 or 3 times in a month, abandonment of Ikoyi office, rising cases of drug abused etc. There should be proper placement of officers to clear the backlog of promotion arrears and payment of all benefits. We demand the immediate payment and national honour of all fallen heroes The release of running cost to State commanders.Resumption of surveillance and raid operation on drug barons suspended by Abdallah”
Find below full list of dead officers under Abdallah in the past two years with their rank and last station.
Below is a list of officers felled since Muhammad Abdallah took over the of reigns of NDLEA:
Narcotic Assistant NASS II: Jibrin Alhassan Kaduna Command, Afolayan John A. Kwara Command and Mohammed Chabiri Aishatu Borno Command
Narcotic Agent NA: Okereke Okezie Imo Command, Etuk Roseline Akwa Ibom Command, Sunday Afam Plateau Command, Ahmed Abubakar Borno Command, Onukak Patricia Bassy Lagos Command, Iorver Felix Akumave Taraba Command, Abanum Raymond Edeli Delta Command, Yahaya Godiye Dodos Yobe Command, Achube David Sunday Benue Command, Liman Salisu Ahmed Taraba Command, Balogun Erastus Osho Ogun Command, Akinfemiwa Sunday Femi Lagos Command and Faruk Ibrahim Bauchi Command
Senior Narcotic Agent SNA: Salele Suleiman Kaduna Command, Bala Aliyu Umar Bauchi Command, Hassan Hasana Sokoto Command
Chief Narcotic Agent CAN: Joseph Lar Gombe Command Oyede Abdul Ogun Command, Suleiman Bala Fakai FCT Command, Andogwu A Nicholas Adamawa Command, Dalyop Julius Pam Plateau Command, Birabil Gbaradon Ondo Command, Sarah Yakubu Nasarawa Command, Nyam Babajo David Plateau Command, and Kamo Thomas Kebbi Command
Assistant Narcotic Superintendent ASN 11: Akhere Maria Lagos Command, Janet T. Oyenuga Lagos Command, Oti Philip Orim Kogi Command, Nicholas Onwumere Kogi Command, Ebun Peters Kogi Command, Abdulraman Musa Kogi Command
Deputy Narcotic Superintendent DSN: Bot Christopher Nyam Plateau Command, Emerenini Cornelius Imo Command, Etudaiye Salihu Kogi Command, Timothy Isaacs Lagos Command, Abdulahi Mohammed Ekiti Command, Abdul Isa Shani Borno Command, Sanusi Abdullahi Osun Command, Achibong Peter Taraba Command
Superintent of Narcotic SN: Odigie Felix Plateau Command, Abdul Ganiyu Ishaq Adamawa Command, Falodun Fumilayo Ogun Command, Bello Stephen Madike Lagos Command, Abdul Ibrahim Waziri Sokoto Command, Adeoye Onifade Olayiwola Rivers Command, Omo Martins Lagos Command, Gambo Musa Osun Command, Aminat Hassan Seme Border Command Lagos
Chief Superintended of Narcotic CSN: Ameachi Kenneth Edo Command, Anthony Oshogwe Cross Rivers Command, Ibrahim Dada Kogi Command, Monday Fada Lagos Command, Kadiri Adesola Ramoni Ogun Command, Tijani Tajudeen Adebayo Abia Command
Assistant Commander of Narcotic CAN: Yashim Danladi Lagos Command
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