By Christopher Oji
The Oluwo of Iwo, Oba Abdul Rasheed Adewale Akanbi has called for death penalty for corrupt person’s in the country.
The first class traditional ruler who spoke at the Annual Crime Reporters Association of Nigeria (CRAN) , Award / Lecture day in Lagos also called for life imprisonment for accomplices of corrupt person’s to serve as deterrent.
He lamented that government has been paying lip service to fighting corruption, noting that no top senior civil servant or politician has been jailed for corruption after six years of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.
He called on Nigerians to stop worshipping riches and start questioning the source of wealth of most people in high places in the society.
“Sadly,Nigerians are honouring thieves and worshipping money even if it was illegally acquired, stolen to get rich”,he said.
He lamented that people have been getting away with crime hence the high rate of corruption in all level of the society.
However, Chairman of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Brig.-Gen. Buba Marwa (Rtd), has disclosed that the agency has arrested over 10,000 suspected drug traffickers and recovered 3 million kilogrammes of drugs in the last 10 months.
Marwa revealed that the agency has also successfully secured the conviction of 1000 persons arrested with different types of drugs in the country.
The lecture with the theme: “Proliferation Of Drugs, Bane Of Insecurity” saw General Marwa X-Raying the security situation in the country, which according to him is the cause of the different infractions in Nigeria.
The chairman was represented by the Commander of Narcotics, Lagos State Command, NDLEA, Mr Callys Alumona.
He said that 10,000 suspects had been arrested and 1,000 had been convicted in the last 10 months since he had been commandeering the agency.
“Even, bandits and terrorists sometimes demand drugs in exchange for persons and they also export drugs in order to get arms to further terrorise us the more.”
Guest lecturer, Dr. Bone Efoziem, regretted that Nigeria has changed from drug transit route to a consumer nation, noting that Government needs preventive approach.
According, Director Street Guard Security ,it was essential for the nation to revamp and reactivate the country’s cultural value system, using same as behavioral gauge among citizens by involving family unity, religious bodies cum leaders, traditional institution/ leaders and social influencers.
In his welcome address, the National President of CRAN Sunday Odita, called for synergy among all security agencies as to effectively curb the menace of bandits, kidnappers and all forms of crime and criminality.
He lamented the high rate of killings of security personnel and noted that the award and recognition of security personnel who have contribution in their modest ways to keep lives and property safe and secure,by CRAN was a way of celebrating their selfless service.