The Nigerian Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has, over the years, demonstrated commitment in the fight against the use of hard drugs and other such illicit substances which imperil the lives of many people in the country, especially youths. Daily, Nigerian newsreel overflows with reports of many people arrested by the NDLEA who engage in or deal with illicit drugs. Among all the banned substances, cannabis or Indian Hemp seems to be the most popular because some people in Nigeria grow it as a crop, harvest and sell it. Gradually, the sale of Indian Hemp has grown into a flourishing market with a coordinated distribution chain where millions of naira exchange hands daily.
Although the NDLEA has vigorously and committedly fought the planting, growth, sale and distribution of this illicit substance, the never-do-wells involved in the trade seem to devise new strategies to promote their art, thus the market for Indian Hemp continues to flourish to the detriment of the lives of millions of youths in the country. Perhaps, the NDLEA would need to increase its media campaign and orientation, addressing the dangers of using these illicit drugs, which youths now turn to as an escape from reality.
Recently, in Ondo State, Southwest of Nigeria, precisely in the Ikun-Akoko community of the state, it was widely reported that the NDLEA, acting on intelligence, sometime in April 2025 swung into action and made series of arrests of persons suspected to have either influenced the activities of those who plant Indian Hemp in the community or those who sold their farmlands to the planters of Indian Hemp. Reports further stated that they were detained at the Ondo State command of the NDLEA for several weeks before they were released under questionable circumstances to the chagrin of the community.
One of the suspects arrested was Hon. Emmanuel Olotu, the Councillor of Ward 9 representing Ikun-Akoko in the Akoko South West Local Government Legislative House. He confessed to the NDLEA that he sponsored the planters of Indian Hemp in the community when they were chased away from the neighbouring Afo village in the Ose Local Government council of the state. Many others arrested and detained by the NDLEA in the course of their investigations included the Youth Leader of the Ikun-Akoko Community, Mr. Felix Owoseni, Mr. Kehinde Olotu, Mr. Idowu Salau, Mr. Kayode Daodu, Mr. Adebori Salau, Mr. Kehinde Alade, and Mr. Omotosho Anifowose. They made confessional statements to the NDLEA in the course of their detention. Efforts to interview any of these suspects were not successful as they refused to grant an interview. Some of them threatened to deal with members of the Executive Council of the town’s Progressive Union, whom they alleged were instrumental to their arrest and detention.
Some youths in the community, who spoke under the condition of anonymity, informed reliable sources that though the NDLEA came to destroy one of the Indian Hemp farms, none of the planters were arrested. They further confirmed that the planters have returned to their various farms to continue their illegal business since the suspects were released from detention. One of the youths, for fear of being attacked, revealed that the negative effects of the planting have begun to manifest in the community. He listed violent acts resulting in physical attacks with machetes, axes and violent robberies within the community. He cited a case of robbery when a car was attacked by some boys in the community. The car was said to have been attacked with axes, while the occupants of the car escaped with varying degrees of wounds from machete cuts.
At the time of filing this report, none of the assailants have been arrested by the police. A violent case in one of the quarters in the community was cited when a man under the strong influence of Indian Hemp attacked some innocent persons with cutlasses and inflic
