NDLEA Denies Alleged Lopsided Promotion Exercise

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has denied reports of lopsidedness in the promotion of its personnel.

Spokesman of the agency, Femi Babafemi, in a statement on Wednesday, said the elevation of officers and men remains an ongoing exercise based on a number of factors including vacancy.

He said: “The attention of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, has been drawn to some online reports suggesting lopsided promotion of personnel. The Agency wishes to state that no such thing exists as elevation of officers and men remains an ongoing exercise based on a number of factors including vacancy.

“Indeed, the issues raised by the category of personnel mentioned in the reports arose in 2011, which was 10 clear years before the current leadership of Brig. Gen. MB Marwa (Retd). However, in a determined bid to motivate the workforce, over 70% of the workforce, a number of who had been stagnated on one rank for 15-20 years, were promoted and their ranks harmonized in 2021 soon after Gen. Marwa assumed leadership of the Agency.

“Even though more than half of the category of personnel referred to in the reports had been promoted in the recent promotion exercises, the ongoing expansion of the Agency which creates more vacancies for officers and men to move up, no doubt provides the window for the few not yet affected to be elevated in another exercise underway for the junior ranks.

“Anyone not yet affected can rest assured that the Chairman/CEO considers their welfare paramount and central to the successes so far achieved by his leadership and will continue to pay attention to their career progression in the interest of the overall high productivity goal set for all Commands and formations of the Agency.”