Nigeria: Nigeria, a Haven for Hard Drugs - George Bush


Leadership (Abuja)

19 September 2007
Posted to the web 19 September 2007

Danladi Ndayebo


President of the United States, Mr George Bush, has listed Nigeria and 19 other countries as either major illicit drug transit or major producing countries, just as he called on the Nigerian authorities to "re-double their efforts to use the frequent arrest of street criminals and couriers to identify and prosecute major drug traffickers."

The American leader, however, commended the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over the progress the two agencies made in their fight against drug trafficking and money laundering activities.


"Nigeria has made progress on many narcotics control and anti-money laundering benchmarks," Bush said in his Presidential Report entitled, "Major List."

"The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has seized millions in the proceeds of crime and its anti-money laundering efforts have been successful," he stated.

Bush identified the major drug-transit or major illicit drug- producing countries as Afghanistan, The Bahamas, Bolivia, Brazil, Burma, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador and Guatemala.

Others are Haiti, India, Jamaica, Laos, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, and Venezuela.

But he said Nigeria "is cooperating with the international community to improve its efforts against money laundering even more."

Highlights of the report stated that Bush had already authorised the U.S. Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, to submit the report to the U.S.

Relevant Links

West Africa
Economy, Business and Finance
Crime and Corruption
Nigeria
Transport and Shipping
United States, Canada and Africa



It contained "Presidential Determinations of the countries that have failed demonstrably to make substantial efforts during the previous 12 months to adhere to international counter narcotics agreements'."

The Presidential Determinations required the American president to consider each country's performance in areas such as reducing illicit cultivation, interdiction, law enforcement cooperation and extradition.

It also took note of efforts to prevent and punish public corruption that facilitates drug trafficking or impedes drug-related prosecutions
http://allafrica.com/stories/200709190692.html

Wow! It's amazing that he did not list the USA as the top consumer of illicit drugs in the world. Wonderful!

Anyway, thank God he did discommend us a bit.


Now where is Mr Ojo Madueke with his reciprocal diplomacy? Let him come and list the USA as the top illicit drug consumer in the world and outline measures through which Nigeria will stop the USA from using Nigeria as a transit point for its drug supplies.

He should also mention the inability for the USA Government to curb the consumption and importation of hard illicit drugs in the USA.

Ojo should fulfil on his word so that the Nigerian Police Force and EFCC can now carry out random raids on USA citizens living in Nigeria to see if they are consuming drugs either in their homes or offices.