Chairman of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), retired Brig.-Gen. Buba Marwa, has revealed that the agency confiscated 1.3 billion pills of tramadol and 4.4 million bottles of codeine between January 2024 and June 2025.

Speaking during a government-citizens’ engagement session in Kaduna on Tuesday, Marwa attributed the agency’s achievements to support from President Bola Tinubu. He warned that the street value of one billion tramadol pills could be close to ₦1 trillion, a sum that could have been used to fund terrorism or arm bandits.

Since Tinubu assumed office in 2023, the NDLEA has seized 5,555 tonnes of illicit drugs—equivalent to 200 trailer-loads. Marwa said the agency also arrested 2,000 drug traffickers, secured 8,682 convictions, and rehabilitated over 24,000 drug users.

On the rehabilitation front, he said Tinubu had approved the construction of seven additional NDLEA rehabilitation centres, bringing the total nationwide to 37. The government also approved one modern centre per geopolitical zone, with implementation expected to begin soon.

Marwa stressed that the administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda aims to tackle drug abuse through policies addressing poverty, unemployment, and youth idleness. He commended the state governments of Kwara and Kaduna for their efforts and called on other states to emulate them.

“We also want to see drug education embedded in primary school curricula,” he said, urging families, communities, traditional rulers, churches, and mosques to actively support the fight against substance abuse.