•As Marwa bags 2021 Daily Asset Public Servant of the Year Award
Mukaila Ola
Members of the Nigerian Military School
Ex-Boys Association, in a solidarity with one of their own, has expressed their willingness to join the ongoing war and advocacy campaigns against the menace of illicit drug trafficking and abuse especially among Nigerian youths.
They gave the promise at the weekend during a visit to the National Headquarters of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) in Abuja by some leaders of the group led by their President, Engr. Femi Ikuponiyi.
The Chairman/CEO of the NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (Retd) was at a time a student of Nigerian Military School.
Ikuponiyi said they were on the visit to identify with Marwa’s strides of accomplishment and vision for the NDLEA as an ex-boy and a pride of the ex-boys family.
He expressed the willingness of ex-boys to join advocacy campaigns to stem and eradicate the menace of use of illicit drugs amongst the Nigerian youths particularly in areas of intelligence gathering and reportage.
Ikuponiyi commended Marwa and described him as a pacesetter and an exemplary ambassador of the NMS ExBA.
In his response, Marwa thanked the NMS Ex-Boys for their visit and offer to support the drug war, stressing that such was an indication that the key message of the War Against Drug Abuse, WADA, launched by President Muhammadu Buhari last June is fast achieving its target of mobilising every citizen to take ownership of the battle against the drug scourge.
Meanwhile, the NDLEA boss was given the Daily Asset newspaper’s Public Servant of the year award for 2021.
The award, which was presented in a well attended event held at the conference hall of Nicon Luxury Hotels Abuja on Thursday, 10th February, had Professor Iyorwuese Hagher, a two-time Nigeria’s minister as the chairman of the occasion.
According to a statement by the spokesman of the agency, Femi Babafemi, the Editor-In- Chief and Publisher of the Daily Asset newspaper, Dr. Cletus Akwaya,
speaking on the modalities for the selection, noted that the selection was painstakingly done.
He said Gen. Marwa was selected out of numerous others in recognition of his enormous contribution to the fight against illicit drugs within one year in the saddle as the Chairman/ Chief Executive Officer of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency.
Akwaya extolled the sterling qualities of Marwa in all positions he had occupied in the past including, Military Governor, Borno State, Military Administrator, Lagos State and Nigeria’s Ambassador to South Africa. He described the successes recorded by Marwa within one year in office as monumental.
Akwaya stressed that the arrest of 12,306 drug peddlers, including 7 barons, seizure of 3.4 million kilogrammes of assorted illicit drugs as well as counselling and rehabilitation of 7,761 drug users within 12 months remain unparalleled.
The fifth Annual Awards and Lecture with theme: “The Media, National Security and 2023 Elections,” was delivered by the Direction General Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), Mallam Yakubu Ibn Mohammed who was represented at the event.