20 Aspirants For Kano LGA Elections Tested Positive For Drugs - NDLEA Reveals

The Nigerian Drugs Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) commander in Kano State, Abubakar Ahmad, has noted that 20 aspirants for the upcoming local government election in the state all tested positive for drugs.

It was alleged that the persons are from the ruling New Nigeria People’s Party.

Ahmad confirmed this in a conversation with Daily Trust.

They were stated to have tested positive for substances including opioids (codeine), THC (the active ingredient in cannabis), benzodiazepines, and nicotine.

“So far, 20 aspirants presented to us by the ruling party (NNPP) in the state have tested positive for multiple drugs, and the exercise is ongoing,” Ahmad stated.

Ahmad also noted that some of the drugs found are related to tobacco.

“It is left for the electoral commission to decide if tobacco is a drug or not because it is something you find even in kola nut.”

No female aspirants have tested positive so far.

The drug tests are part of the screening process ahead of the NNPP’s submission of its candidate list to the Kano State Independent Electoral Commission (KANSIEC), which will verify all candidates before the October 26 election.

These elections will fill 44 chairmanship and 484 councillorship seats across Kano’s local governments.

It would be recalled that in 2018, the state government approved compulsory drug test for political appointees, civil servants and students seeking admission into the tertiary institutions.