By Jemimah Wellington, JKNewsMedia Correspondent
EFFORTS TO sanitise police recruitment in Nigeria gained traction as the Police Service Commission moved to involve the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) in conducting drug integrity tests for prospective officers.
Chairman of the PSC, retired Deputy Inspector-General Hashimu Argungu, led a delegation to the NDLEA headquarters in Abuja on Tuesday 22 July 2025, where he formally sought the agency’s assistance in screening recruits across the country for substance abuse.
He said the initiative aims to eliminate candidates’ dependent on illicit drugs before they enter police training institutions.
Argungu stressed the importance of a rigorous, standardised screening process, warning that the inclusion of drug users in police ranks could pose a major risk to national security.
He noted that the Commission plans to decentralise the recruitment exercise, leveraging NDLEA’s state command structures nationwide.
“You can’t put arms in the hands of people already dependent on illicit drugs; that is dangerous,” Argungu said.
“We follow process and procedure to get the right result. If we do otherwise, the product—our police officers—will be compromised.”
In response, NDLEA Chairman Brigadier General Mohamed Buba Marwa (rtd) expressed full support for the collaboration.
He reaffirmed the agency’s readiness to deploy across its national network of commands to assist the Commission with high-quality test kits capable of detecting tampered samples.
Marwa emphasised the role of substance abuse in fuelling broader security challenges, advocating a coordinated, multi-agency response to drug control. “We’re happy to collaborate with you. Our kits will give you the right results,” he assured.
