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NDLEA Boss Becomes IDEC President
URL: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v04/n673/a03.html
Newshawk: Herb
Pubdate: Fri, 30 Apr 2004
Source: This Day (Nigeria)
Copyright: 2004 This Day.
Contact: thisday@nova.net.ng
Website: http://www.thisdayonline.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2870
Author: Oghenekevwe Laba
NDLEA BOSS BECOMES IDEC PRESIDENT
Lagos
The Chairman/Chief Executive of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency
( NDLEA ), Alhaji Bello Lafiaji, has been elected President of the
European Working Group of the International Drug Enforcement Conference
( IDEC ).
His election took place at a conference of the organisation at Lima,
Peru, recently. He had the Secretary of the IDEC two years ago.
A total of 400 delegates, representing 70 countries were at the
conference. Prior to the election, there was an overwhelming vote
of confidence on the Nigerian's tenure as secretary of the organisation.
He was consequently elected unanimously by participating countries as
president.
A statement signed by NDLEA Assistant Director, Public Affairs, Jonah
Ache-ma, stated that the Admini-strator of the United States Drug
Enforcement Admin-istration ( USDEA ) and the United States Secretary of
State, representative of the President of America, Geo-ge Bush, at the
meeting, tasked Lafiaji to further ensure positive strides in global
drug control, especially in the area of exchange of intelligence and
international development.
This, they added, has to do with the development and application of
effective anti-money laundering, assets forfeiture and development of
new measures towards control of production and distribution of synthetic
drugs and precursor chemicals.
Achema stated that Lafiaji, being the first African to be appointed into
the office, was saddled with the responsibility of mobilising countries
and accepting their membership of the organisation, which was aimed at
the establishment of a verile counter-narcotic intelligence database and
exchange of valuable information among member countries.
He said experts were of the view that the NDLEA boss' appointment was a
demonstration of the favou-rable perception of the international
community of Nigeria and that Lafiaji's ascendancy to the presidency of
the esteem global family of drug control was a further testimony of the
positive international accreditation of Nigeria's anti-drug efforts by
the present administration of Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, efficiently
piloted by the leadership of the NDLEA.
In appreciation of his appointment, Lafiaji, who said he was humbled by
the appointment, assured the international community of Nigeria's
commitment to the drug war as well as his renewed offensive in the fight
against hard drugs, promising to see to the enlistment of more countries
into the organisation.
"The fight against hard drugs is not a country affair. This
is because if one country succeeds and neighbouring countries still
remain trafficking hubs, then the country may still have to sleep with
one eye open", Lafiaji stated.
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