The governor of Kano State in northern Nigeria, Abba Yusuf, has signed an executive order aimed at curbing drug trafficking and abuse across the state. According to the announcement, the new order takes effect immediately. Alongside the signing, the governor inaugurated an anti-substance abuse task force charged with carrying out what has been described as a public safety emergency order.
One of the central provisions of the order concerns the movement of people in areas worst affected by the problem. The measure restricts movement across locations that have been identified as hotspots and epicenters of drug abuse, imposing the restriction between six in the evening and ten in the morning each day. The aim is to make it harder for the trade and consumption of illicit substances to continue unchecked in those areas.
To enforce the order, the governor said that security agencies at both the federal and state levels would be reinforced. Their role, according to the order, is to stop, search, arrest and prosecute suspects linked to the drug trade. The intention is to give the security services a clearer mandate and stronger backing to act against those involved in trafficking and abuse.
The order also reaches into the question of property. The governor affirmed that any certificate of occupancy attached to premises used for the sale of illicit drugs or for trafficking would be revoked. By targeting the buildings and land used in the trade, the administration is seeking to remove the physical spaces on which drug dealing in the state has relied.
Explaining the reasoning behind the move, the governor pointed to the youthfulness of the state's population. He noted that sixty percent of Kano's more than twenty million residents are young people, and warned that allowing the trend to continue would jeopardise their future. He said that, faced with the increasing rate of drug abuse and trafficking, he was left with no option but to inaugurate the task force against the menace.
The task force has been charged with identifying, mapping and dismantling all hideouts, illicit drug dens and territorial enclaves across the state. In his acceptance remarks, the chairman of the task force, Muhuyi Magaji, thanked the governor for the confidence reposed in him and gave an assurance that the committee would carry out its assignment with integrity and professionalism, and without compromise.