President Bola Tinubu has withheld his assent to the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency Bill, 2025 into law.
The President communicated this decision to decline assent to the bill to the National Assembly through a letter read in the Green Chamber on Thursday during plenary.
The President, cited Section 58(4) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), and explained that the proposed law seeks to empower the NDLEA to retain a portion of the proceeds from drug-related crimes in contravention of existing financial regulations.
According to him, under the current arrangement, “All proceeds of crime are paid into the government’s Confiscated and Forfeited Properties Account. Disbursements to any recovery agency, including the NDLEA, can only be made by presidential approval, subject to the consent of the Federal Executive Council and the National Assembly.”
Tinubu said there was no compelling reason to alter a process designed to uphold accountability through executive and legislative oversight.
