The Chairman of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), retired Brig.-Gen. Buba Marwa has advised Nollywood practitioners in particular and entertainers in general against promoting drug abuse through their content to the public.
Marwa gave the advice on Friday, July 15, in Lagos, at a one-day conference organised by NDLEA Celebrity Drug-Free Club to mark the 2022 International Day Against Illicit drug Abuse and trafficking.
The conference had its theme “Best Approach to Drug Control: The Role of Entertainment Industry Practitioners”.
Marwa, who was represented by Mr Segun Okeh, NDLEA Zone H Commander, said there were many approaches to checking drug abuse.
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According to him, one of such channels is using the entertainment industry to reach a large number of people, particularly the youth about the dangers of drug abuse.
He, therefore, noted that;
We need to appeal to the entertainment industry practitioners not to send the wrong message that has drug abuse contents in your cast, script, presentation on the screen.
You must watch properly the contents while processing entertainment to the public. There is a tendency for the young mind to believe that what they see in entertainment is real.
It is our wish that the entertainment industry practitioners will join NDLEA for enlightenment and fight against drug abuse.
The Commissioner of police in Lagos State, Mr Abiodun Alabi, who commended the club for organising the event, stressed that the entertainment industry practitioners had a lot to do to check drug abuse in society because of their large followership.
Alabi, who was represented by CSP Gbenga Stephen, noted that lots of committed crimes were attributable to the increase in drug abuse.
The leader of the club, Mr Wilson Ighodalo, said the conference was designed to harness the enormous potential in the creative industry, to promote an evidence-based approach to drug abuse in Nigeria.
He commended the Marwa-led NDLEA for its recorded feats against illicit drugs, stressing that the club’s desire to use the conference was to have a community intervention programme against drug abuse.
Ighodalo raised concern about the high level of drug abuse, especially among young females, saying statistics revealed that one out of every four drug users, was a female.
He said there was an urgent need for massive investment in health care service delivery through community intervention, to address drug abuse and encourage youths’ participation in advocacy against the menace at a community level.
