The Pre-marital Drug Integrity tests advocacy campaign by the National Drug Enforcement Agency(NDLEA) has continued to gain momentum as more Nigerians endorsed it as a good policy. A cross-section of Nigerians who spoke with Action Now Against Drug Abuse gave thumbs up to NDLEA for coming up with this campaign. They reasoned that it will help stem cases of drug induced violence in marriages which is becoming more rampant .They asked the Agency to go a step further by getting the National Assembly to make it a National Policy and pass it into law.
The spokesperson for NDLEA, Femi Babafemi said the Agency is getting massive support on the campaign for integrity drug test before marriage. He said Religious Leaders and more young people have indicated interest to join NDLEA in the campaign.
Not only that, Babafemi said the leadership of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has also indicated interest for drug tests to be administered on students on campus to determine their drug status. NANS was convinced that this step would help to check growing crimes and criminality among Nigerian youth.
Femi Babafemi
Meanwhile, a Legal Expert, Barrister Victor Ukutt has said the pre-marital drug integrity test is an infringement of rights of Nigerians to freedom of association. He said for the policy to be binding, the Act establishing NDLEA has to be amended.
Ukutt would rather wants NDLEA to team up with relevant stakeholders to tackle the bane of drug abuse among Nigerians, especially the alarming consumption of illicit drugs by the youth. The renowned legal expert said the fact that 3 out of 5 youth might be under the influence of drugs is a source of grave concern, that requires urgent national response.
Action Now Against Drug Abuse 