The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has alerted the public about the circulation of dangerous illicit substances being falsely packaged and marketed as medicinal cannabis.
This is contained in a statement by the NDLEA Director, Media and Advocacy, Mr Femi Babafemi, on Wednesday in Abuja.
Babafemi stated that the public alert came on the heels of credible intelligence, which led to the arrest of a 28-year-old drug kingpin on Saturday, Nov. 1 at his 2 Akala Street, off Umoru Street, Idi Oro, Mushin-Lagos.
He said that the suspect was packaging and distributing the fake medicinal cannabis in designer pouches and cups.
He added that “a total of 16.4 kilogrammes of dangerous and synthetic strains of cannabis were recovered from his store.
“This include Colorado, Arizona, Canadian Loud and Ghana Loud packaged in designer pouches and cups labelled as medicinal cannabis.
“The agency, therefore, wishes to warn Nigerians, especially youths, that the so-called medicinal products are, in reality, adulterated and highly potent strains of dangerous psychoactive substances.
“They are not the regulated, safe pharmaceutical preparations they are purported to be”, he warned
Babafemi said that investigations by the agency confirmed that the seized and recovered products being peddled under the guise of therapeutic cannabis contain dangerously high concentration of illicit and harmful strains of cannabis.
This, he added, included Loud, known for its extreme potency and severe psychological effects, and Arizona, a highly concentrated and destructive variant of cannabis.
“The other one is Colorado, a potent, often synthetic strain, with devastating consequences on users’ mental and physical health.
“Rather than the purported medicinal cannabis in the designer pouches and cups, the strains are highly addictive and pose significant, immediate threat to public health and safety.
“This is because they are associated with severe mental health issues, including psychosis, acute anxiety, paranoia and other long-term cognitive impairments, especially among young people.”
The NDLEA Chairman, Retired, Brig.-Gen. Buba Marwa, also said that the criminal elements behind the deceit were only exploiting the global conversation around medicinal cannabis to push their illicit and life-destroying products into communities.
Marwa said that cannabis remained a prohibited substance in Nigeria and as such, any product being sold locally under the guise of ‘medicinal cannabis’ is not only fake and dangerous, but also illegal.
The NDLEA boss urged the public to be vigilant and not be deceived by misleading labels, fancy packaging or false health claims.
“Please do not consume it, report any person or group involved in the illicit trade of these dangerous substances to the nearest NDLEA office”, he appealed.
