Drug barons set rules in Ibadan, Oyo state ‘evil forest’

•N10,000 fine for ‘illegal entry’
•NDLEA, DSS, military raid plantation
By Richard rhiz

The destruction of 68 acres of cannabis sativa farm in
Gambari forest, Ibadan, Oyo State, was like a war front. A
combined team of armed soldiers, Civil Defence, Department
of State Security Service (DSS), National Drug Law
Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) and forest management
officials, operating under the aegis of Operation Burst, trooped
into the forest to destroy a plantation harbouring cannabis
sativa commonly known as Indian hemp or marijuana. The
plantation is located within Olounde village, Ogunmakin.
The armed team drove for hours through ldi- Ayunre village to
lki-Oke Alayo to access the forest.
The destruction of the weed itself lasted several hours as the
farm appeared to have no end.
Forest management officers cleared the weed with cutlasses,
NDLEA officials went round to spray chemicals on it while the
soldiers surrounded the farm for protection.
After so much work, the security operatives appeared like local
farmers with stains all over them. The discolouration was so
conspicuous on their uniform.
The NDLEA Director of Operations and General Investigation,
Mr. Mabo Olugbenga, who came from Lagos headquarters,
had led the way into the forest. Gaining access into the place
was a big challenge, as the team drove from Ibadan through
several villages. They passed through lki- Oke Alayo village, ldi
Ayunre, among other communities, before getting to the
forest.
After passing Iki-Oke Alayo village, everyone had to trek into
the forest for hours as the farm location had no roads.
The bush paths were rough with streams and swampy areas
making movement difficult.
On getting to the farm, the marijuana plants looked fresh. Each
acre of the plantation had a hut with food items and plates
inside it. Standing on the farmland was a written code of
conduct, stating that, lateness to work attracts a fine of
N2,000, fighting attracts six strokes, entry into the farm
without permission N10,000 fine and making noise N1,000.
Other rules include attending meeting in the farm every first
Sunday of the month, even as every worker is expected to be
at the camp by 5pm each day after work.
In a chat with Sunday Vanguard , Olugbenga described the
place as evil forest, explaining that the marijuana farm was
worth millions of naira and was discovered through
intelligence. He said, “This is not the first time we are carrying
out this type of operation and we would not relent in doing our
best to sanitise the system. We thank the governor of Oyo
State for giving us tremendous support. Last year, we
destroyed over nine tons of hard drug plantations”.
He went on, “The current management of NDLEA has zero
tolerance for hard drug business and is doing everything
possible to curb the menace. Criminals are those involved in
this nefarious business. They take advantage of the economic
situation in the country to recruit many people to work for
them at such plantations.
The victims of this illegal business are our youths who
consume the end product of the plants. I implore parents and
the entire public to give useful information to appropriate
security agencies in the fight against hard drug business in the
country”.
The representative of the Special Adviser on Security to Oyo
State governor, Dr. Olatundun Sunday, who also made the trip
to the forest, frowned at marijuana cultivation in the State,
stressing that his principal will continue to support NDLEA in
its effort to tackle such criminality.