Education
….says government should bear costs and there should be strict confidentiality *
CIVIL rights advocacy group, Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has strongly commended the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) and the Federal Government for introducing mandatory drug testing for students in secondary and tertiary institutions across the country, describing the policy as a revolutionary strategy to combat substance abuse among Nigerian youths.
The Rights organisation however called on the Federal Government of Nigeria to pick up the bills of the tests and just like health related information are legally strictly confidential (as provided for in freedom of information) , any information on the outcomes of such drug tests must be kept confidential to avoid law suits and unnecessary stigmatisation of students who may fail the crucial tests.
HURIWA said the initiative represents one of the most proactive and far-reaching interventions ever introduced to discourage young Nigerians from embracing hard drugs as a lifestyle. HURIWA urged the students to embrace the tests as Government’s predisposition to mould them in good citizens for the society and for their own interest.
The rights group particularly praised the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of the NDLEA, Brigadier General Mohammed Buba Marwa (retd.), for what it described as visionary and result-oriented leadership in the ongoing war against narcotics trafficking and drug abuse.
In a statement signed by its National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Nnadozie Onwubiko, on Tuesday, HURIWA noted that the NDLEA had consistently demonstrated commitment, innovation and professionalism through aggressive sensitisation campaigns, arrests, prosecutions, rehabilitation programmes and strategic engagements with youth-based organisations across Nigeria.
The Human rights group HURIWA observed that the agency had reached out extensively to students, youth associations and participants of the National Youth Service Corps to educate them on the dangers of substance abuse and the need to reject hard drugs.
According to HURIWA, “The NDLEA has started a revolutionary solution to beat early drug habits amongst Nigerian youngsters, and the Federal Government has rightly adopted it as a national policy. This is a bold, timely and commendable intervention.”
The Civil society association HURIWA stated that preventing drug addiction among young people at an early stage remains the most effective strategy in reducing criminality, violence and insecurity linked to narcotics abuse.
HURIWA further commended the NDLEA for maintaining what it called impressive operational successes under Marwa’s leadership, including high conviction rates against drug traffickers and barons across the country.
The organisation also applauded the agency for confiscating huge sums of illicit funds and securing the forfeiture of hundreds of expensive landed properties and assets linked to drug cartels through lawful judicial processes.
“These achievements clearly demonstrate that the NDLEA under General Marwa is working round the clock to make Nigeria drug-free and safer for future generations,” the statement added.
HURIWA argued that the introduction of compulsory drug tests in schools would not only serve as a deterrent but would also encourage early detection, counselling, rehabilitation and behavioural correction among affected students.
The Civil society group HURIWA therefore called on the National Assembly to grant the NDLEA greater operational and funding autonomy to enable the agency sustain its short-term, medium-term and long-term anti-drug strategies. HURIWA argued that since the Nigerian state has mandated for compulsory drug tests as muted by NDLEA, the counter-narcotics agency must be granted enhanced funding autonomy to achieve the desired result. HURIWA has called for increased sensitisation on these drug tests so as to make the policy a students friendly policy.
According to HURIWA, adequate funding and institutional independence would strengthen the agency’s capacity to intensify intelligence gathering, public enlightenment campaigns, rehabilitation programmes and enforcement operations nationwide.
The civil rights association HURIWA urged Nigerians, especially parents, teachers, school administrators and religious leaders, to support the anti-drug campaign and cooperate with the NDLEA in protecting the nation’s youths from the dangers of narcotics abuse.
HURIWA maintained that the success of the campaign against substance abuse requires collective national responsibility and sustained political will. HURIWA has pledged to support the NDLEA in driving the process of sensitisation campaigns across the country and in mainly the rural based schools in the South East of Nigeria.
A.I
May 12, 2026
Tags: Brigadier General Mohammed Buba Marwa (retd.) HURIWA NDLEA