Steve Agbota, [email protected]
Smuggling and importation of tramadol and other harmful drugs through the nation’s major seaports and land borders appears to have taken a worst turn in the last three years.
The thriving trade in psychotropic substances have continued to threaten the nation’s economy and security architecture as importers are still bringing in these drugs into the country in the full glare of Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) with claims of giving the perpetrators a bloody nose in most of its communications.
Although, tramadol is not under trade prohibition, it is controlled and regulated and where it is imported above the prescribed 100 milligrams, it becomes a violation of the law.
However, recent records have shown that customs seizures so far amounted to illicit importations as they come in various strengths ranging from 120 to 250 milligrams which are far beyond the 50 and 100 milligrams approved by the National Agency for Food, Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC).
Like codeine, experts say many Nigerian youths are now addicted to tramadol, with many increasingly disposed to committing violent crimes and other anti –social vices.
Statistically, 90 per cent cases of violent crimes in Nigeria including robbery, kidnapping, banditry among others have been traced to the effect of consumption of tramadol and hard drugs on youths.
Daily Sun learnt that lack of extensive support, inclusive economic development and lack of access to education by youth; jobs and skills have pushed many into drug abuse.
With severe symptoms of tramadol abuse, include seizures and Central Nervous System depression (CNS). CNS depression is when the central nervous system slows down to the point where the heart rate and breathing decreases, which can lead to loss of consciousness, coma, and potentially death.
Although the government said it has started to clampdown on importation of banned drugs and stricter control on others, the reality is that most of these substances are still entering the nation’s markets even with battery of security operatives along Seme Badagry Expressway. Indeed in the last two years, NCS and other sister agencies said they have seized and destroyed tramadol worth over N300 billion and just few weeks ago, NCS destroyed 58 containers of banned tramadol and other illicit drugs worth N14.7 billion.
The destruction exercise was jointly carried out by the NCS, National Agency for Food, Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) and other sister agencies.
Even NAFDAC has said it destroyed tramadol with a street value of N193 billion in one year.
Despite the adverse health effect of tramadol abuse, illegal importation of this harmful drug through organised crime with the backing of rich and powerful persons, has continued unabated.
Compt. Aliyu Mohammed of the Federal Operations Unit, Zone A, Ikeja Command, who said rejected N50 million to clear containers loaded with tramadol in 2018 recently voiced out that he has been under tremendous pressure from the importers of the banned drugs that he can no longer walk freely for fear of being attacks.
According to the Public Relations Officer of the Command, Jerry Attah, the cabal importing tramadol are after his boss’s life that they even dropped a threat letter in his house in Kano. But he said his boss has stated it clear that the threat would never deter him from performing his duty or compromise.
Just weeks ago, at Onne-Port Harcourt, five suspects, who offered an officer of Customs N1million bribe to allegedly allow them access to a 40ft container of tramadol seized by the Service were arrested.
Experts who spoke with Daily Sun wondered if the importers are on the mission to wipe out Nigerian youths by investing billions of Naira on the importation of banned tramadol and other harmful drugs! They urged the daredevil importers to use the money on products that would empowered the youths through jobs creation.
Speaking at the flag- off of the destruction exercise at the Sagamu dump site, Ogun State recently, Comptroller General of Customs, Hameed Ali, who was represented by the Assistant Comptroller General of Customs in charge of Zone ‘A’ Kaycee Ekekezie condemned the activities of deviants who smuggle banned drugs and other harmful substances into the country.
Ali lamented the harmful effect the seized drugs would have caused if they had gone into circulation, stating that the money that could have been channel for the welfare of the citizenry is rather been wasted.
He added: “I am standing here with mixed feelings because money that should have been used for better productive purposes will be destroyed. People should never see smuggling as a trade. It is a crime. The menace of such drugs in our society cannot be underestimated having caused huge negative impact both on our economy as a whole and the depreciation and danger to human life.”
While appealing to Nigerians to join hands with the Service to fight the menace of drug abuse in the country, he urged importers to take advantage of the Customs portal and be sure of the status of what they want to import to guide against importation of restricted items into the country.
Said he: “I call on all and sundry to assist officers of the Nigeria Customs Service and other relevant security and regulatory agencies by providing real time information at all times to help fish out the perpetrators of this negative act of smuggling dangerous drugs and bring them to justice.”
Director, Registration and Regulatory Affairs of NAFDAC, Monica Eimunjeze, commended Customs effort in preventing the smuggling of hard drugs into the country even as she advocated for collaboration between security agencies and the public to eradicate the society of hard drugs.
She explained that the approved milligram for tramadol is 50 and 100 while higher milligrams of above 100 are prohibited.
“We have something to do in controlling the use of this Tramadol in our society. See billions of Naira going down the drain, money that would have been used to build our country. This event today speaks our minds that, we say no to bringing in of hard drugs, we say no to importation of substandard drugs and we say no to destroyed society,” she said.
Also speaking at the event, Chairman of the joint committee, Assistant Comptroller General (ACG), in charge of Enforcement, Investigation and Inspection, Aminu Dahiru, said most of the violent crimes like robbery, kidnapping, banditry and other associated crimes are linked to consumption of illicit drugs.