…Calls for sustained partnership with NGOs, stakeholders to intensify campaign against illicit drug peddling
The Delta State Bureau for Orientation and Communications, Governor’s Office, Asaba, will on September 21, 2026, commence Phase Two of its Drug-Free Delta Campaign, targeting selected secondary schools and tertiary institutions across the three senatorial districts of the state. The campaign is being implemented in collaboration with the Delta State Command of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), under the leadership of the State Commander, Dr. Halilu Hamidu.
Director-General of the Bureau, Olorogun Fred Latimore Oghenesivbe, Esq., disclosed this in a statement on Sunday, saying the Bureau and the NDLEA would hold a joint press conference on September 15 at the Bureau’s Conference Hall in Asaba to unveil the campaign’s special T-shirts, face caps and other advocacy materials.
Oghenesivbe said the campaign would deepen public awareness, particularly among young people, on the health, social, security and economic consequences of substance abuse and illicit drug trafficking. He said Governor Sheriff Oborevwori remained committed to a Drug-Free Delta, where the potentials and productive capacities of young people could be harnessed for sustainable development and economic growth.
“The focus is to protect our young people from the consequences of substance abuse and create an environment where their potentials can be fully harnessed for productive development,” he said.
He said the impact of illicit drug peddling extends beyond individual users and offenders to the wider economy, as substance abuse and dependence can weaken the productive capacity of young people, increase pressure on families and public health services, contribute to school dropout and expose communities to associated crime and insecurity.
“When young people are drawn into drug abuse or the illicit drug economy, we are not only dealing with an individual problem; we are also losing valuable human capital and weakening the productive base of the state,” Oghenesivbe said.
Against this backdrop, the Director-General expressed concern over reports of increasing involvement of young women in illicit drug trafficking and hawking in the state, as contained in a recent report by the NDLEA State Command. He called for sustained partnership with the You Matter Charity Foundation, a pet project of the Wife of the Governor, Deaconess Tobore Oborevwori, as well as NGOs and other stakeholders, to intensify advocacy and interventions aimed at discouraging young women and other vulnerable groups from participating in the illicit drug trade.
“We need stronger collaboration with organisations and stakeholders working directly with young people, particularly young women, to prevent them from being recruited into this dangerous underground economy,” he said.
Oghenesivbe described drug abuse as more than a law-enforcement challenge, saying its consequences could undermine education, employability, family stability, public health, community safety and productivity. He said sustained public enlightenment and behavioural-change communication were therefore necessary to prevent young people from being drawn into substance abuse, trafficking and other related criminal activities.
He commended the state government and NDLEA for their sustained collaboration in tackling substance abuse and illicit drug trafficking, disclosing that banned substances valued at more than N2 billion had been seized in the state within the past year. He said the seizures reflected intensified enforcement, but stressed that enforcement must be complemented by prevention, education, counselling, rehabilitation and reintegration.
He urged parents, educators, community leaders, religious organisations and young people to support the Drug-Free Delta Campaign, particularly by promoting positive alternatives for youths and supporting efforts to curb illicit drug activities.
Oghenesivbe said a sustained, multi-sectoral approach combining enforcement, prevention and public education remained essential to reducing drug abuse and protecting the state’s youth population, human capital and economic future.
