Malami Orders NDLEA To Suspend Screening Of Candidates Due To Covid-19

The Federal Attorney-General (AGF) and the Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, ordered the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) to stop its scheduled mobilization of 5,000 applicants in Jos, Plateau State, for a work screening and documentation exercise.

Daily Trust reports that in a statement by its spokesman on Friday, the NDLEA directed a total of 5,000 candidates to appear at the Agency’s Academy, Citadel Counter-Narcotics Nigeria, (CCNN), Katton-Rikkos, Jos, Plateau State at 0900 hours daily for the screening and documentation exercise between 10 and 23 January 2021.

However, in a statement released late Friday by the Federation’s Solicitor General, Dayo Apata, the AGF instructed the Chairman of the NDLEA to stop the exercise and seek further clarification/advice from the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 in view of the health implications of the second wave of the pandemic at this time.

The exercise is undoubtedly long overdue and necessary for the actualization of the mandate of the Department, but the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice states that, given the current and alarming wave of the COVID-19 pandemic across the region, the timing is ill-advised and inappropriate.

“In view of the above, Malami directed the President of the NDLEA to retain further action on this matter until clarification/advice has been received from the Presidential Task Force,” he said in the statement.

Furthermore, the Chairman was asked to inform the applicants of this progress accordingly.