President Bola Tinubu has rejected a bill seeking to allow the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) keep part of the money and assets recovered from drug-related crimes.
He explained his decision to the National Assembly, saying the proposal clashed with the current law which requires all such proceeds to be sent into a single government account created for confiscated and forfeited assets.
Citing Section 58(4) of the 1999 Constitution, Tinubu raised concerns about how the bill planned to fund the agency.
He said allowing NDLEA to directly take part of the money it recovers could create issues with transparency and go against existing procedures.
Under current law, only the president can approve how confiscated funds are shared among government agencies, and that must also be cleared by the Federal Executive Council and a national body in charge of coordination.
Tinubu noted that there was no strong reason to change this process, which already involves checks from both the executive and legislative branches.
He also said his decision was not meant to disregard the work of the National Assembly, as he still respects its role in governance.
