By Christiana Ekpa
The House of Representatives has launched a far-reaching investigation into Nigeria’s escalating drug abuse and trafficking crisis, vowing to expose systemic failures, enforce accountability, and halt a menace threatening public health and national security.
Opening the investigative hearing in Abuja, Chairman of the House Ad hoc Committee on Drugs, Trafficking, Alcohol and Tobacco Abuse, Rep. Oluwatimehin Adelegbe, described substance abuse as a national emergency “threatening the soul of our country.”
He said the committee was inaugurated to uncover the truth, identify institutional weaknesses, and recommend decisive reforms capable of reversing the dangerous trend. “Our mission is clear: to investigate, to protect, to reform, and ultimately to save lives,” Adelegbe said.
According to him, the crisis is fuelled by the convergence of illicit drug trafficking, unregulated pharmaceutical distribution, predatory alcohol marketing, and aggressive tobacco promotion. “This is stealing the health of our youth, weakening our labour force, destabilising communities, and undermining our collective future,” he warned.
Adelegbe said the reality can no longer be ignored, noting that cannabis is openly smoked on the streets, methamphetamine use is spreading rapidly, and codeine-based cough syrups are sold almost like soft drinks. He added that tramadol 200mg is trafficked with the coordination of hard narcotics, while cheap and hazardous alcoholic mixtures are destroying young people in motor parks, campuses, and marketplaces.
The lawmaker also accused tobacco companies of exploiting regulatory loopholes to target minors through flavoured products, informal retail channels, and deceptive marketing practices. He decried the influx of substandard pharmaceuticals, fake spirits, and unregistered products, blaming weak enforcement at ports, airports, and land borders for enabling trafficking syndicates.
“Entire communities have been crippled by addiction, crime, and preventable deaths. Nigeria is losing too many lives, too many futures, too many families,” he said, stressing that the probe is not a witch-hunt or anti-business move but an accountability exercise to protect Nigerians.
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