President Bola Tinubu has approved a second five-year term for Brigadier-General (rtd.) Mohammed Buba Marwa as Chairman of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), securing his leadership of the agency until 2031.
The decision was announced on Thursday through a statement issued by the President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga.
Tinubu said the renewal reflected his confidence in Marwa’s work and the NDLEA’s intensified crackdown on drug cartels nationwide.
“You have earned this reappointment through your dedication to tackling drug trafficking and substance abuse.
”I expect you to continue pursuing those who profit from hard drugs and threaten the future of our youth,” Tinubu said.
Marwa, originally appointed to the role in January 2021 by former President Muhammadu Buhari, has presided over a period widely regarded as one of the agency’s most active.
Under his leadership, NDLEA says it has arrested more than 73,000 suspects ranging from couriers to high-profile drug barons, and seized over 15 million kilograms of illicit substances across the country.
The agency also intensified nationwide advocacy campaigns, focusing on prevention and rehabilitation as key parts of its strategy against drug abuse.
Before joining NDLEA, Marwa chaired the Presidential Advisory Committee for the Elimination of Drug Abuse between 2018 and 2020, a role that laid the groundwork for many of the reforms he later implemented at the agency.
A retired senior military officer, Marwa previously governed both Lagos and Borno States.
His military career includes roles such as Brigade Major of the 23 Armoured Brigade, Aide-de-Camp to then Chief of Army Staff Theophilus Danjuma, and Academic Registrar at the Nigerian Defence Academy.
He also represented Nigeria abroad, serving as Deputy Defence Adviser at the Nigerian Embassy in Washington, D.C., and later as Defence Adviser to the Nigerian Mission at the United Nations.
Marwa holds postgraduate degrees from the University of Pittsburgh and Harvard University, specialising in public administration and international affairs.
With his tenure now extended, the NDLEA is expected to continue its aggressive anti-narcotics operations as well as its public-health-focused campaigns aimed at reducing drug dependence across the country.
