Speaking to Daily Observer yesterday, Chief Inspector Abdoulie Ceesay, the public relations officer, NDEA said the agency carried out the operation when they received information about a suspected cannabis hideout in a village called Seewole, five kilometers from Sibanor Village in Foni. He said acting upon the information, the area was placed under surveillance until between 03.00-04.00 am Wednesday 25 August 2010, when Seewole Village was raided by NDEA officers in collaboration with a military back-up team. He disclosed that during the operation, a huge stock of cannabis sativa estimated to be more than one ton was recovered at a particular location within the village.

The NDEA spokesperson further disclosed that six suspects, three Gambians and three Senegalese were arrested during the operation. He said the suspects - Momodou Badjie, Sainey Gibba, Ebrima Jallow (Gambians) Tapha Gibba, Sainey Gibba and Malick Sanneh (Senegalese) are currently under custody at the NDEA, helping officers in their investigation.Ceesay said one of the suspects, Malick Sanneh, is reported to be a rebel from Cassamance.

On behalf of the Office of the Executive director of NDEA, Ceesay conveyed profound gratitude to the chief of Defence Staff (CDS) of the Gambia Armed Forces (GAF) Lt. General Kinteh, for his supportive efforts which contributed greatly to the success of the operation. "The military back-up played a vital role in the operation. NDEA being a security outfit, its officers are not armed but for the soldiers, they are armed and they gave our officers enough back-up to ensure that the operation was successful," he said.

While recalling that the president of the Republic have been calling on the sister forces to collaborate in the fight against drugs, the NDEA PRO assured that the agency will make sure that The Gambia will not be a haven for any drug trafficker. He called on the general public to cooperate with the agency, saying, "the fight against drugs and all its forms should be the responsibility of every Gambian and non-Gambian". He noted that the suspects have being working together in illicit drug dealing, going by the way the cannabis was concealed.

He continued:"We know that 75% of cannabis, being the most common drug used in The Gambia, come from the southern region. Everyone knows that the drug comes from the southern region which share borders with Cassamance region. Therefore, in any unstable region, there must be lots of illegal activities, more particularly the sale of drugs among others." He further noted that the seizure is a big credit which will go a long way in reducing the supply of cannabis in the Greater Banjul Area.