The Chairman/Chief Executive, Nigeria Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Col. Muhammad Mustapha Abdallah (rtd.) has said that the NDLEA, German Government Canine Project which started in 2010 has yielded 26 major arrests, leading to the seizure of 17, 932 metric tons of sundry drugs within the country.
He disclosed this on Wednesday when a team of NDLEA / German Government Canine Project paid a courtesy visit to him at NDLEA Headquarters in Abuja.
According to the agency’s statement made available to journalists, a total of nine officers have so far been trained on various levels of narcotics detection dog handling proficiency, adding that a total of 14 Narcotic detection dogs have so far been donated to the agency by the German government.
He added that this is in addition to the donation of two new Toyota Haice buses and a Mercedes Vito van.
“These numerous donations have made such a tremendous impact on the operations of the Agency at the international airports, sea ports and land borders”,
NDLEA boss added that the story of agency could not be written without the interventions of the German Government.
“The Agency is the leading capability in the use of canine for its operations. The German Government is singularly instrumental to this capability through its generous donations of dogs, vehicles and continuous training of our staff”.
Abdullah added that the collaboration between the agency and the German BKA is to culminate in the establishment of an academy in Nigeria dedicated for the breeding of canine and the building of capacity of canine officers.
“The Academy is to meet the canine needs of other crime combating country.
Also speaking, the Vice President of the German Federal Criminal Investigation Office, Michael Kretschmer commended National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, for its “professionalism and operational excellence” in preventing and countering drug trafficking.
He said the purpose of the visit was to acknowledge NDLEA’s consistent excellent performance over the years.
“I am here to appreciate your professional work and to ascertain whether our intervention meets your needs and to also find out your general impression of our collaborative efforts”.
He added that through the NDLEA/German Government Canine Project, the Agency has been able to seize huge quantities of drugs.
“But the truth is, it is your work and diligence that have about these operational accomplishments. You have extremely committed canine officers. We have met the dogs donated to you by the German Government in very good shape”, Kreschmer said.
