President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has approved the renewal of Brigadier-General (rtd) Mohammed Buba Marwa’s appointment as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) for a second five-year term. The reappointment, announced on Friday, November 14, 2025, extends Marwa’s dynamic leadership of the nation’s anti-narcotics agency until 2031, signaling the Presidency’s commitment to sustained, aggressive action against drug trafficking and abuse.
The decision was formalized in a statement issued by Bayo Onanuga, the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy. President Tinubu emphatically described the renewal of Marwa’s mandate as a strong affirmation of his performance.
“Your reappointment is a vote of confidence in your onerous efforts to rid our country of the menace of drug trafficking and drug abuse,” President Tinubu stated. “I urge you not to relent in tracking the merchants of hard drugs, out to destroy our people, especially the young ones.”
Marwa, who was first appointed by former President Muhammadu Buhari in January 2021, has overseen a widely acclaimed transformation of the NDLEA, shifting its operations to an “offensive action” stance. Under his tenure, the agency has recorded massive successes that justify the President’s confidence.
The agency’s key milestones since 2021 include:
- The arrest of over 73,000 drug mules and barons, significantly disrupting major trafficking networks.
- The seizure of more than 15 million kilogrammes of various hard drugs, representing an unprecedented interdiction rate.
- The aggressive rollout of nationwide advocacy campaigns, such as the War Against Drug Abuse (WADA), which focuses equally on drug demand reduction, treatment, and rehabilitation.
Marwa’s career is marked by extensive service in both military and public administration. He previously served as Military Governor of Borno State (1990–1992) and later, famously, as the Military Administrator of Lagos State (1996–1999), where he gained wide popularity for his pragmatic leadership and security initiatives.
An alumnus of the Nigerian Military School and the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA), Marwa was commissioned as a second lieutenant in 1973. His distinguished military service included roles as Brigade Major of the 23 Armoured Brigade, Aide-de-Camp (ADC) to then-Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant-General Theophilus Danjuma, and Academic Registrar of the NDA. He also held diplomatic posts as Deputy Defence Adviser in Washington, DC, and Defence Adviser to the Nigerian Permanent Mission to the United Nations.
Academically, General Marwa holds two specialized postgraduate degrees: a Master of Public and International Affairs from the University of Pittsburgh (1983–85) and a Master of Public Administration from Harvard University (1985–86).
The renewal of his five-year term ensures stability and continuity in Nigeria’s national drug control strategy, allowing the agency to build upon its recent gains in tackling what remains one of the nation’s most destabilizing security and public health challenges.
