The duo were responding to the concerns raised by President Jammeh Tuesday evening at State House in Banjul, during a meeting he held with the senior management of the National Water and Electricity Company (Nawec) and the Gambia Ports Authority (GPA). Benedict Jammeh, who was appointed the Drug Agency boss earlier this year, said it is very sad that there are a lot of drugs in this country.  

He revealed that apart from the sativa cannabis, which is locally grown, a lot of new drugs are coming into this country such as cocaine, heroine, and hash, which he said is now being produced here, and so on. The NDEA boss, a former police chief, also expressed concern over the involvement of some members of the security forces in the illegal trade.

He said: "We have failed in our duties that the nation expects from us. We the security forces are responsible for all the drugs in this country in one way or the other. We either help in bringing these drugs into the country, or we informed the drug dealers as to which route they [should] take. “We the security forces once we put on these uniforms we think we are above the law. They would refuse to be searched and they would carry drugs, and protect the drug dealers. A good example I would give is where a prison officer takes drugs to Mile II and is caught inside. And you know some of these inmates were convicted because of drugs and you are there to protect their lives and now you take these drugs to destroy them completely."

While emphasising that drugs destroy many young people in a country and tarnishes its' good image, Jammeh challenged the members of the security forces to go back and set up people who would monitor their own. He also said that some security officers smoke sativa cannabis openly. "If we check the bottom line of why security officers are involved in drugs, it is because we are greedy. We are definitely greedy and we do not care whether it destroys the future generation or not. And with all His Excellency the president is doing for us, we turn back not against him because he is protected but against the youths of this country," he added. To this end, the Drug Agency boss once again solicited the cooperation of all and sundry in providing information to the agency with a view to help them crackdown on the dealers.

Also speaking on the same subject, Lt. Gen Masanneh Kinteh assured President Jammeh that the war that he declared on drugs is no longer his [the president's] fight but the fight of the Gambia security fraternity. The CDS pointed out that two measures or things must be adopted for them to succeed in the fight against drugs. According to him, as members of the security forces or law enforcement agencies, there is the need for their houses to be cleaned first.

"If our houses are not clean and if we don't get rid of drug dealers and users in our own houses, it is not possible for us to go after drug dealers on streets," he stressed. The second measure, he added, is collaboration and cooperation amongst the security forces, something he underscored would help a great deal in cracking down on those engaged in drug-related activities and get rid of the menace in the country. Like the Drug Agency boss, CDS Kinteh also lamented on the negative impact of drugs on the society, reiterating that it destroys the "cream" of the society who are supposed to be the future leaders of the country.

"We have seen in many places how the very fabric of the society is destroyed. We have seen what drugs can do. So if you are asking us to make this society a drug free one, it is just to renew your call and your quest to pave a good future for this country," the CDS assured. He concluded by renewing his commitment and resolve in his capacity to making sure that GAF is drug free. "I have started that crusade. Even before you talk about it, Your Excellency, as a [then] commanding officer at the 2nd Infantry Battalion, the first soldier I sent home was because he was using drug and he was caught with drugs. And I can assure you that there is no compromise," CDS Kinteh stated, re-emphasising that it is only through joint collaboration and cooperation amongst the security services that they can be very effective in their fight against drugs.