The National Drugs Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has warned Nigerian students, particularly students of the University of Ilorin, against hard drugs, saying no drug can enhance their academic performance.
According to NAN, Mr Mohammad Ibrahim, the NDLEA Commander, Kwara Command, advised while speaking with Journalists on Tuesday at Unilorin.
He asserted that hard drugs do not promote the performance of students in any examination.
He explained that “part of what the Command is doing is to enhance the working ability of the patrol teams to control the state and also to put more officers on the road to intercept substances coming into the state”.
According to him, the unit’s target is the general public, youths and adults, both male and female.
He said this was because no human being is immune to drug abuse, as drug addiction cuts across all aspects of life.
Ibrahim further explained that all categories of drugs can be abused.
“NAFDAC is in charge of the licit drugs, while the NDLEA focuses on illicit drugs and psychoactive substances, including cannabis, cocaine and heroin. These are substances completely banned by the law,” he said.
The NDLEA boss explained that some substances are not banned but controlled because they are sometimes abused despite being for medication.
“The consequences of drug abuse can be categorised as social, physiological and physical.
“There is a part of the brain called the prefrontal cortex responsible for reasoning and making decisions.
“It is not fully developed until age 22 or 23 in an individual. So, when laced with substances, it leads to distortion of perception, thinking and cognitive reasoning, which leads to risky decisions and affects academic performance,” he cautioned.