ADMINISTRATION

Management (Administration)

Throughout historical times, man has had to contend

with how to harness the resources available to him to
produce the desired results or accomplish set objectives.
The way and manner this should be done has engaged the
attention of many scholars. In some circles this process is
called management; in others it is called administration.
Thus, the terms mean the same thing; which one a particular
person uses, is a matter of nomenclature.
2. Perception as to how best to manage or administer
resources vary from people to people and from circumstance
to circumstance. Some of the theories that have crystallized
from these divergent views include:-
a. The classical approach,
b. The Management Science approach,
c. The Behavioral approach,
d. The systems approach,
e. The contingency approach.
The Classical Approach
3. This approach was developed by managers who were
concerned about improving management practice at the
beginning of the 20th century. Their main concerns were:-
i. Increasing the productivity of the individual,
ii. Increasing the productivity of the organization
within which work is being performed.
That is to say, the work of the individual as distinct from
the work of the entire organisation.
4. Their studies as to how to manage work and manage
the organisation to achieve higher levels of productivity
became known as the Classical Approach. In some literature
refer to this approach as Scientific Management. This is
because its emphasis is on application of scientific methods
of rational analysis to improve work and the organisation.
5. Essentially the classical approach has two aspects: the
aspect that emphasized the work of the employee, and the
aspect that emphasized the organization within which the
employee works. Based on these concerns; a set of
principles involved:
a. Principles of work organisation
Classical management theorists believed that the
work place can be better and more productive if
work is predicated on the following principles:
i. Simplification of work, that is, make the
work simple and understandable to the
worker.
ii. Schedule work, that is assignment of work
to specific persons. Every worker should
know his role.
iii. Work Efficiency, wherein the best results
would be obtained at the least cost.
iv. Management responsibilities for
managing work. Every management must
know its responsibilities which include:-
a. Planning, i.e. deciding what should be
done,
b. Organizing, i.e. specifying what should
be done to achieve the identified
objective,
c. Leading and influencing others to
engage in productive work behavior,
d. Controlling the work by selecting and
training qualified staff
- Overseeing the actual job
performance,
- Verifying that actual output meets
expectations.
b. Principles of managing the organisation
These set of principles deal with the unit as a
whole, rather than the discrete work levels. These
are:
i. Division of labour
Work should be divided sub-divided to take
advantage of specializations
ii. Parity of authority and responsibility
 Each jobholder should be delegated sufficient
authority to enable him/her carry out the job
assigned.
iii. Discipline
Employees must obey organizational
regulations while managers must punish
infringement fairly.
iv. Unity of command
Employees should, ultimately, be accounted
to one superior authority, in each unit.
v. Unity of direction
Activities that have same purposes should be
grouped together and operate under the
same plan.
vi. Subordination of individual interest to
organisation interest
Every employee must accept the fact that the
interest of the organisation super cedes
his/her interests.
Vii Fair remuneration
Pay should be based on achievement of
assigned jobs

viii. Centralization
The overall command must rest on one office
and commands emanating from there form
should apply uniformly.
ix. Scale chain
The chain of command should be clear and
unbroken.
x. Job order
Each job should be clearly defined so that the
job holder understands it and its relationship
to other jobs.
xi. Equity
Rules should be enforced fairly and justly.
xii. Stability of personnel
 Personnel should be assured of job security
so as to enhance their loyalty to the
organizations.
xiii. Initiative
Employees should encourage and allowed to
exercise independent judgment within their
delegated authority and defined jobs.
xiv. Espirit de corps
Employees should be encouraged to identify
with each other as stakeholders in common
entity.

The Management Science Approach (MSA)

4. The central theme of this approach is to provide
managers with quantitative bases for decisions
regarding the operations under their control. A more
complete definition of MSA is that it “is the science
devoted to describing, understanding, and
predicting the behaviour of complicated systems
of men and machine operating in the natural
work environment”. It is in fact an extension of
some of the ideas that underscored the classical
approach that is rational, objective analysis of data and
using these to improve productivity.
5. The keyword in this approach is” provision of
quantitative bases for decision-making”. In other
words, management should be predicated on
quantitative data. Hard facts. The distinguishing
characteristics of Management Science Approach are: -

ii. Primary focus on decision making

Whatever statistics is acquired and analyzed, the
primary concern should be how to use it to make
decision.
iii. Reliance on economic effectiveness criteria
Choice of action must be underscored by the
effect on the future well being of the organisation,
such as cost, funds available, overall benefits, etc.
iv. Reliance on mathematical models
 The mathematical model stresses replicability.
This is to say, actions taken today should be such
that years after, the same action will produce
almost similar results. In other words, the facts
upon which decision are taken should be
objective/factual enough to withstand the test of
time.
v. Use of computers and computerization
Given the necessity for accuracy and timeliness of
data analysis, as a basis for management
decisions, the Management Science Approach,
advocates the use of computers.

The Behavioural Science Approach

6. This approach is predicated on the belief that the
behaviour of individuals and groups is the key element of
organizational success. Combining insights provided by
Psychologists, Sociologists and Anthropologists, they argue
that the behavioural components of the work- individuals
and the teams they form, as well as the behavior of the
organisation itself, are what matter in the success or
otherwise of any agency.
The key concerns of the approach are:-
i. The dignity of the worker. Every worker wants to
have his/her dignity protected and amplified by
the job.
ii. The worker’s interest, which should be met by the
agency for which he works.
iii. Creation of conducive work environment to make
the workers comfortable.
iv. Motivating the staff to ensure that they give their
best.
v. Work should create opportunity for the
development or workers potentials.
vi. The overall orientation of the organisation as a
corporate entity.
The Systems Approach
7. This system stresses the fact that every organisation
is a total system in which each part is linked to others
parts. It views an organisation as a group of lubricated
parts with a single purpose. Because the action of one part
affects other parts, managers cannot afford to deal with any
part in isolation. In solving problems, managers using the
systems approach must view the organisation as a dynamic
whole and must try to anticipate the intended as well as
unintended impacts of their decision. Such managers do not
solve individual problems as such; rather they intervene in a
total system of interrelated parts, using the management
functions of planning, organizing, controlling, motivating and
leading.
8. As it were, the objectives of individual parts often
conflict with each other, but the systems approach
emphasizes that these individual interests must be
compromised for the overall system to achieve its desired
objective. A good manager, under this approach, is one who
sees the individuality of the parts, the interdependence of
these individual parts and ensures the harmonious
interdependence in order to achieve the overall good of the
organisation.
The Contingency Approach
9. This approach stresses that the correctness of a
managerial practice is contingent on how it fits the
particular situation in which it is applied. In other
words, managers must find different ways to fit different
situations. This is because a method that is highly effective
in one situation may not be effective in another situation.
That is to say, effective management tool is contingent on
the situation.
10. The contingency approach has grown in popularity over
the last three decades because researchers have found that,
given certain characteristics of a job and certain
characteristics of people doing the job, specific management
practices tend to work better than others. Indeed, the good
manager studies the characteristics of the job on hand and
the people involved before deciding on the management
approach to use. Sole reliance on this Classical or
Management Science or Behavioral approach is not sufficient
for effective management of an organisation.

General principles of administration

As other disciplines like: education, economy, etc,
have principles, so does Administration. Certain principles
have been tried and found to be the bedrock of sound
administration.
Before dealing with the principles, it is important to
define the world ADMINISTRATION. Administration can be
defined as in any of this ways:
i. The efficient management of resources (human and
material) in order to achieve organizational goals and
objectives.
ii. The good management of human arid material
resources in an organizational setting for the purpose of
achieving the goals and objectives of the organisation
in most efficient manner.
iii. Getting things done through people” The followings are
particularly important as principles of administration:
a. Foresight
b. Economy
c. Flexibility
d. Simplicity
e. Cooperation

FORE SIGHT
It is not expected that an administrator should be a
prophet or a seer. He should, however, be able to forecast,
based on his knowledge and experience, the probable
consequences of measures proposed for policy. He should in
addition be able to think of likely future developments. From
this knowledge and accumulated experience, he should have
the skill to deduce likely developments, given a set of factors
and circumstances. It is this aptitude that will enable him to
advise accurately and effectively on the formulation of policy
and on the department’s reaction to situations. He must
always anticipate difficulties that may arise and jeopardize
his plans and what needs to be done to overcome such
difficulties. Simply put, foresight is “thinking ahead”.
ECONOMY
Since resources (human arid material) are scarce, it is
the duty of the administrator to allocate these resources to
the specific areas where they are essentially needed and this
must be done rationally. This is to satisfy the principle of
“putting the right peg in the right hole”. To achieve
maximum and efficient utilization of resources, the
administrator should therefore evaluate and weigh possible
application or usage of his resources so as to gauge the facts
about any situation.

FLEXIBILITY
Most important of all, an administrator should posses a
flexible mind — a mind capable of comprehending enough
about every conceivable subject and inter-relating them in
clear logical sequence. In this respect, an administrator
differs from a technical specialist. The specialist thinks
deeply and sometimes, obsessively about his particular field
of specialization. He is often so enthusiastic about his
particular field that he does not feel that it is his concern to
recognize the political, financial and practical limitations of a
given situation. The administrator on the other hand, must
possess the quality of thinking briefly and rapidly about
many subjects and their inter-connections, of combining
political, social and technical factors into specific judgment
for the consideration of policy makers. Due consideration
must be given to the different characteristics of those organs
and the factors which affect the operations as a whole. It is
important to say that an administrator must not allow his
flexibility to affect his sense of judgment. This is all about
adaptability.

SIMPLICITY
Administration is a complex subject. It is complex in the
sense that it cuts across diverse areas- home, public service,
civil service, private sector etc. Its application is largely a
matter of common sense approach to day-to-day problems,
combined with foresight and intelligent anticipation. A good
administrative plan is almost invariably a simple one.
Complicated plans nearly always lead to inflexibility. The
simpler the plan, the more readily it can be adapted for the
desired objective. Hence, the use of simple comprehensible
standardized procedures for daily execution of programmes.

COOPERATION
For the effective and total attainment of maximum
output, the collective performance of entire members of an
organisation cannot be over-emphasized. Staff must function
as a team. Each individual has his own particular job to do,
but all must direct their efforts towards the same goal, which
is the efficiency of the team as a whole. Intimate cooperation
between the different branches of staff is therefore essential.

FIRMNESS
A good administration/administrator stresses firm but fair
and judicious application of the rules of the game. Firmness
means sticking to the right action always, but not in a
dogmatic fashion. It has to complement flexibility.

CONCLUSION
The theories and principles of Administration are
standard guidelines for effective administration. Their
application is not supposed to be stereotyped. A good
administrator juggles these theories and principles according
to the exigencies of the situation at hand. In other words,
the application of the principles and the adoption of the
principles to local administrative environment by the
administrator should be contingent upon the facts of the
situation on ground.

RECORDS MANAGEMENT

1 (a) Introduction
 The Chairman/Chief Executive of the National Drug
Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) is responsible to
the president, commander-in-chief of the Armed
Forces of Nigeria for the discharge of the Agency’s
statutory responsibilities as prescribed by the
provisions of the Decree 48 of 1989 which
established the Agency. Some of which are:
(i) Exterminating illicit drug cultivation, trafficking
and consumption in the Nigerian society, and
seizure of assets suspected to be gotten through
drug trafficking.
(ii) Investigation, arrest and prosecution of drug
traffickers in narcotics, and
treatment/rehabilitation of drug abusers.
(iii) To redeem the image of Nigeria which hitherto
had been bettered by the illegal trade by our
country’s unpatriotic men and women? For the
attainment of these laudable objectives
therefore, the Chairman/Chief Executive directs
the Agency in the performance of its statutory
roles through the operation, maintenance and
sustenance of an efficient registry, which
provides for secure and readily accessible
records, properly collated, assessed, analysed
and classified intelligence for the enhancement
of productivity of all arms of the Agency, to
combat the drug war, for the sustainable
integrity and security of the nation.
2. Establishment of Registry
(i) Location
Registry should be sited at the upper most floor or
ground floor of a building so that over-looking and
over-hearing is avoided. It should be a self-
contained unit within the agency headquarters,
secured against unauthorized entry. It should be
adequately ventilated, lighted and should have good
fortification, including security counters for
controlling access into the registry by non-registry
staff.
 (ii) Equipment
Registry should have sufficient storage space for
equipment such as fire-proof steel filing and index
cabinets, with cross-bars and padlocks for locking
the cabinets, computers and shredding and
photocopying machines, steel combination key safe,
typewriters, furniture for shredding and
photocopying machines, steel combination key safe,
typewriters, furniture for staff, adequate stationary
supplies, refrigerators for the welfare of staff and Air
conditioners for the protection of equipment.
(iii) Organisation
An effective registry where collation of records is
readily available and accessible is the solution to
timely processing and dissemination of intelligence
to the consumers. To achieve the required standard,
therefore, a uniform system, with trained staff and
clearly defined duties is maintained. The uniform
system is simple, capable of expansion, and flexible
enough to meet general requirement. The duties in
the registry are to be co-ordinated and supervised
by intelligence, loyal and efficient Registry
Supervisor to avoid breaches of security and ensure
correct procedure.
(iv) Components of Uniform Record System
(a) Logging of Incoming Mails, reports and
correspondence
(b) Alphabetical Card Index
(c) Numbered Files
(d) Chronological Filing
(e) Personnel files
(f) Impersonal files
(v) Administration
The registry is controlled by the Assistant Director,
Records Management [AD, RM] at the Agency’s
headquarters, Lagos, and assisted by the PSO,RM.
The AD, RM is responsible for the control and
supervision of all the Zonal Command registries in
the Federation. The procedure of operation in the
 registry is uniform as stated earlier, but is only
modified in regard to the volume of work and size of
staff.
(vi) Manpower
Essentially, the need for adequate staff component
to man the registry cannot be overstressed. It is,
therefore, important that the registry should be
manned by competent and intelligent personnel
under the able supervision of an officer not below
grade level 13. Such an officer would be in firm
control of both the staff and the records in his/her
custody. The staff should be motivated through
prompt payment of salaries, nomination to attend
courses and regular promotion. The registry should
not be staffed by ‘unproductive staff’ as it does not
augur well for the development of the registry,
especially considering the sensitivity of the records
in their custody.
3. Records Maintenance Procedure
(a) Definition of Record
Records are written documents, correspondences,
forms, maps, plans, books, photographs, films and
other documentary materials which register facts
permanently about events and persons for the
purpose of perpetuating knowledge of those events
and persons. Records are made or received by any
government Ministry/Agency in the course of an
administrative or executive transaction. The records
are maintained to assist the Agency in carrying out
its defensive and offensive mission.
(b) Record Management
The system or art of managing the records, the way
and manner the records are created, stored, retrieved,
maintained, and transmitted. It is the way and manner
of managing records from its creation and utilization
until its final disposition.
4. Why Keeping Records
a. For security reasons
b. To provide information data bank
 c. To provide historical bank for references
d. For the efficiency of an organization
e. To assist in the production, introduction and
processing newly acquired intelligence.
f. To marshal the accumulated intelligence in a tidy
fashion so that individual items can be found
speedily.
g. To assist the Agency in the administration of
government policies.
5. Management of Records
(a) General:
The four keywords for the establishment and
maintenance of an efficient and usable record
system in counter-intelligence activity are SELECT
– CATEGORIZE – FILE – PURGE.

(b) Selecting Information

Essentially, while establishing the Agency’s
records, thorough consideration must be given to
the type of data for inclusion in the records. This is
so, because the Agency’s mission is specific and
the information sought is that which will assist in
the identification, penetration, manipulation and
the repression of individuals, personalities, groups,
organisations, agents and double agents,
conducting and capable of conducting clandestine
activity on narcotic drugs and psychotropic
substances, inimical to the nation’s integrity and
security. Extraneous and trivial information which
have nothing to do with the Agency’s specific
mission should not be collected to avoid clustering
the files and making them unwieldy and diminish
the effective use.

(c) Categorizing
After determining the type of information that
should be included in the records, the Agency,
organisation or institution must consider setting
up categories of files to receive the information
 and permits its maximum and timely exploitation.
Current and useful data must be added to the
records constantly. Such data should consist of
information concerning policies, plans, activities,
aims, facilities, personnel, resources, targets,
techniques and a host of other details about any
organization or personalities, etc. who are of
interest to the Agency.

(d) Filing
Filling is the systematic way of keeping records.
The files or records are the heart of any
organisation especially of an organisation whose
purpose is to collect and analyse information.
A file exists when records are systematically
arrange, regardless whether they are housed in
loose leaf binders, bound in book form, or placed
vertically in the drawers of steel cabinets. It is of
cardinal importance that a comprehensive yet
simple system be adopted like earlier stated in this
paper. The success of any organisation therefore,
depends to a large extents upon records which are
accurate and secure and which permit easy and
rapid reference.

(e) Principle Obstacles

A file may be organised very efficiently and its
system may also be very efficient and yet it can also
be useless: -
i. If information is filed in the manner in which it
gets to the Archive. Information should be
classified and identifying/locating cards should be
prepared.
ii. If there is lack of training on how to acquire
information. For example, if the acquisition of
information is faulty as it does not result from an
effort to answer objectively the classical questions,
 what, when, how, who, where and, then the entire
exercise may be useless. This means that the
efficiency of the registry would be compromised
from the start. It is therefore of fundamental
importance to train the personnel of the Agency in
the acquisition of information in order to make it
possible to have truly useful registry.

6. Filling System
Personal (Individuals) and Impersonal (on subject
matter). It is very important to consider what hopefully will
be obtained from using the file that is to be installed or
restructured. Other considerations include operating
economy, available personnel and size of the premises to be
used.
(a) General Alphabetical Order
All the cards and folders [files] are to be arranged in
strict alphabetical order and placed in the filing
cabinets.
b) Serial Number
Every card dealing with the same subject will have a
consecutive “chronological” number. The folder will
have the chronological number in addition to the
subject heading (serial number). Once a number has
been issued to a file, it would not be assigned ever
again to anyone else even if his folder were to be
stored in the Archive.
(c) Alphabetical / Numerical Order
Preparation of as many cards are needed and
arranged in strict alphabetical order. The cards
include those of individuals and subject matters.
The folders will only bear numerical order in the
filling cabinets.
(d) Numerical Index Cards for Impersonal Matters
The cards are prepared in order to verify by number
the title [or name] on the folder.
Example Red Cross of Nigeria (RCN) NDLEA/0.1
Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) NDLEA/0.2
Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) NDLEA/0.3
 The cards are here not arranged in alphabetical
order but in numerical order. If one has the number
then by using these index cards a search can be
made in the registry arranged alphabetically
according to the name of individuals, organisation or
the heading of a subject to which such a number
may correspond.
(e) Lists.
This is another way of locating cards and folders
filed in alphabetically order when the only thing
available is their numbers.
List Separating Dossiers
NDLEA/S/1 - Arrests
NDLEA/S/2 - Drug Traffickers Ghana
NDLEA/S/3 - Drug Barons in Pakistan
NDLEA/S/4 - Assets Seizure

7. Purging
As soon as it is considered or discovered that a file is
obsolete or useless, it should be purged from the records
either by destruction or retirement to archive for reference
or historical purpose. The responsibility for determining what
files should be purged should be borne by the file Analysts
whose recommendation is sent to the Authority concerned
for review and approval. A certificate of destruction is issued
thereafter for record purposes. An example is when the files
are no longer pertinent to current operations or when cases
have been completed, the files may be disposed of in several
different ways or methods as follows: -
(i) Maintenance of a separate storage facility to ensure
continued security of past operation, methods and
knowledge of drug traffickers.
(ii) Integration of the files/materials with the intelligence
data contained in the regular classified files, to
ensure the retention of the security of past
operations.
(iii) By destruction, which is appropriate only if there is
absolute certainty that the material is totally
worthless currently and in the foreseeable future?
 (iv) Information which has proven false or misleading in
the light of particular developments should not
remain in current operational records. On the other
hand, data which appears to have outlived its
usefulness sometime become valuable.
Note:
In all cases, he purging of records must be based on
sound consideration, experience and professional
competence.
9. File Analyst
The creation of File Analyst section which will vet all
incoming reports and information to determine their
substance and future usefulness before such are filed away
is very important. The officers will be those who are careful,
steadfast, and patient and must have general understanding
of the mechanical operation of the organization. The
analysts will determine which records are to be kept and
duration before they are purged.
10. How to Locate File in the Office
(i) S.O.S (Save Our Soul)
It is otherwise known as search warrant. Registry
staff and the RS should know the meaning, use,
application and significance of S.O.S. it is used for
urgent purposes.
(ii) Absent File Card, Movement Card or Charge-Out
System
A registry as a repository of file should contain file
racks and pockets which should be hung in rows in
the racks. Each file is supposed to be kept in a
pocket while the Absent File Card is tucked inside
the front cover of the file. The card is used for
tracing the movement of the file.

Absent File Card or Charge-Out System

SUBJECT……………………………………………..............................
.................
……………………………………………...........................................
......................
……………………………………………...........................................
......................

TO DATE ‘DATE NAME OR INITIAL OF

WHOM OUT IN RECORDING OFFICER

(iii) Morning List

It is done by the registry staff, messenger or
secretary attached to Schedule officers in the
organisation. It involves going round offices to
obtain the particulars of file with the schedule
officers for purpose of accountability.
(iv) Movement Registers (IN-COMING) OUT-GOING
They are books designed in appropriate pattern to
record into or out of the registry and schedule
offices all in-coming and out-going correspondences
and reports as the case may be, for reference
purposes.
11. Security Document
(a) Definition of Document
A document is any written materials,
correspondence, form, book, film, sketch, plan,
photograph, recording, tape, typing ribbon, drawing,
map and other documentary materials which are
produced by the Agency in the execution of its
statutory responsibilities and preserved or stored in
records for future reference and, or use.

(b) Security Documents

Security documents are those documents containing
intelligence reports affecting statutory role or
 specific mission of the Agency and are classified Top
Secret, Secret, Confidential and Restricted.
(c) Top Secret
Information and material the unauthorized
disclosure of which would cause exceptionally grave
damage to the Agency or the nation.
E.G
(i) Very important records relating to negotiations
or alliances
With other nations on drug war.
(ii) Sensitive government policies on Defence plans
of a country.
(i) Details of vital documents relating to a strategic
or tactical
Operation on execution of drug war.
(iv) Monthly Intelligence Report (MIR) of the Agency.
(v) Critical Information relating to
Scientific/Technical development of
defensive/offensive interest.
(vi) Major Agency’s plans and important strategic
proposals on execution of the agency’s
operations duties.
(d) Secret
Information and material, unauthorised disclosure of
which would cause serious injury to the interest of
prestige of the nation or the agency, or would be of
great advantage to a foreign nation.
E.G.
(i). Information on strategic and tactical intelligence
of the agency
(ii) Important negotiation/proposals to foreign
representative on drug matters.
(iii) Economic plans of the government.
(iv) Operational plans of the Agency.
(v) Routine reports to the government and other
sister agencies, etc.
(e) Confidential
Information and materials the unauthorised disclosure
of which would be prejudicial to the interest of
 prestige of the agency or would cause Administrative
embarrassment to the Agency, or would be an
advantage to a foreign nation.

E.G.
(i) Confidential reports on individual staff (APER).
(ii) Issues of promotion, retirement, dismissal,
termination of appointments, upgrading, etc.
(iii) Bargaining negotiations in connection with the
purchase of the agency’s supplies.
(iv) Negotiations/Alliance with foreign powers on
control of drug activities/trafficking.
(v) Vetting reports on staff or their spouses.
(vi) Sworn Oaths of Secrecy/Allegiance.
(vii) Confirmation of Appointment.
(viii) Disciplinary matters.
(ix) Petitions against staff, etc.
(f) Restricted
Information and materials other than the Top Secret,
secret, and confidential which concern internal
activities of the organisation.
E.G.
(i) Departmental books or literature on training or
instructions.
(ii) Internal policy changes.
(iii) Transfers/Postings/Appointments.
(iv) Matters for official information only. e.g. Memo
or Circulars.
(v) Personnel matters: -
- Training/Courses
12. Document security
Definition
Document security is the protection accorded classified
information. It involves: -
(i) Classification
(ii) Control
(iii) Inspection
(iv) Transmission
(v) Accessibility
 (vi) Storage

` (a) Classification
Over-classification of document should be avoided in
order not to render the report worthless and
monotonous. In the same vain, under-classification
should not be allowed to avoid loosing the
required protection.

(b) Control
All measures adopted to protect security information
and prevent them from falling into wrong hands.
Such measures include: -
i. Registration of documents
ii. Control of copies of out-going correspondence
not to exceed the required number and the
distribution must be shown.
iii. Control of photo-copy machine
iv. When the content of report involves crime and
security matters and requires further
investigation by other governmental agencies,
only an extract of the relevant portion should be
forwarded and not the whole report. This is
necessary to protect the security matters from
exposure.
v. Unwanted papers, such as drafts, carbons should
be shredded immediately by typists.
vi. Where there is a break in numbering in a file,
and unauthorised removal of document is
suspected, immediate report should be made
and investigation commenced.
vii. Discouragement of unceremonious removal of
documents from files without proper
documentation.
viii. Retrieval and return of all files from officers to
the Registry at the close of the day for
safekeeping.

(c) Inspection
 (i) Ensure that the report has been properly
addressed to correct addressee. A wrongly
addressed report could defeat the need to know
principle.
(ii) Suspected mails on receipt should be inspected
for lethal bombs, before they are opened.
(iii) Envelope before opening should be inspected to
ensure that the seal has been broken.

(d) Transmission/Dispatch
It is the process of sending a security information or
report from one office to another.
(i) Not by post
(ii) Not by Unofficial Couriers
(iii) Proper arrangement should be put in place – Use
of double envelopes (Classified).
(iv) Dispatch Box
(v) Diplomatic Mail Bag/Courier - (To foreign
countries are sent through arrangement made
by the Ministry of External affairs through the
Nigerian Mission abroad.
(vi) Registered Post.

(e) Accessibility
It is the privilege of obtaining or having access to
classified information.
(i) People who should have access to classified
information must be vetted properly.
(ii) Vetting of their Spouses before marriage.
(iii) Must be closely watched to detect those who
have flair for
Material things.
(iv). Redeployment of unsuitable staff
immediately they are detected.
(iv) Must be staff of high integrity whose loyalty is
not in doubt or questionable.
(vi). Adoption of ‘NEED TO KNOW PRINCIPLE’
‘NEED TO HOLD or RETAIN
‘NEED TO TAKE
 (COMPARTMENTALIZATION)
Before releasing classified materials, purely in the
performance of officers’ duties.
(vii) Self- Disciplined
(f) Storage
There should be spacious storage facilities.
(i) Fire – Proof cabinets should be used.
(ii) Adequate physical security measures should
include fortification with burglary proof, fire
alarm devices, etc.
(iii) Limited storage facilities result to misfiling,
misplacement of classified documents and files,
and difficulty in retrieval of records.
(iv) Single storage facility for security documents or
governmental documents should be
discouraged.
(v) Encouragement of double storage facilities.
Second facility should be spotted in a concealed
and less attractive area outside the capital in
order to provide a back-up in case of fire or
sabotage.

13 Classified Documents Required For

Conferences/Business Abroad
Should be sent in advance by Diplomatic bag. When this
is impossible because the documents are not prepared until
shortly before the officer is due to leave, documents
classified T/S, ‘S’ and confidential may be carried by an
authorized officer only if he is documented as a special
courier, and if possible, provided with a courier’s passport
and a diplomatic way bill. On no account should classified
documents be taken into a hostile or potentially hostile
country by a special courier who is not accorded diplomatic
status. Top secrets, secret and confidential documents
should be sent abroad by diplomatic courier or by special
courier under the arrangement made by ministry of External
Affairs, address to the Nigeria mission in that country.
 Restricted - through diplomatic bag or registered post.
Should not be send by post to countries where there is a risk
of their being intercepted.

14 Official Secret Act 1962

The Official Secrets Act was enacted on 13th
September, 1962 and published on 20th October, 1962,
in supplement to extra-ordinary gazette No. 84 Vol. 49.
a) Why was the act enacted?
i. The old one was out-dated and needed a review.
ii. The growing need for improved security of
classified information or material.
(b) Purpose of the act
i. To provide protection for official information or
material from unauthorized disclosure by willful,
neglectful or careless act of omission.
(c) Offences under the act
The Act provides that it is an offence to:
i. Extract, copy, retain or transmit any
classified information without authority.
ii. Failure to comply with security regulations and
instructions regarding classified information.
iii. Endanger the safety of classified information by
willful or careless act of omission.
iv. Improperly disclosure to any person any official
information.
v. Failure to disclose knowledge of any offence
against the Act by any person.
(d) Penalties for offences Against The Act
i. 14 years imprisonment upon conviction on
indictment, or
ii. 2 years imprisonment or a fine of N200 or both
upon summary conviction.

15 Record Automation
 Automation means a computer-integrated or
computer-assisted system that substantial reduces
the labour of records control and increases access to,
and consequently the value of the information stored
in the system. Automation will not totally eliminate people
but the vital functions of control in the system are more
machine-based than they are human-based. However,
record automation requires adequate and proper co-
ordination or records since these records are used as
database for the conversion and computerisation exercise.
This, therefore, underscores the need for sound foundation
for our records management system as it is what we feed
the computer is what shall be retrieved.

16 Conclusion
This paper has discussed Record Management in-depth.
It has covered the Establishment of Registry, records
maintenance procedure, management of records and
documents security. Distinguished ladies and gentlemen, I
believe we have covered the vital aspects of record
management.

LEADERSHIP
Introduction
Leadership can simply be put as the qualities possessed
by an individual that draws the willingness of his
subordinates to respect arid follow him willingly.

Types of Leadership
2. Earlier studies of leadership tried to explain leadership
by pointing out leaders superior qualities of personality and
character which separated them from their followers. It is
often assumed that some people are born leaders but the
essential qualities and skills involved in leadership can be
learned and developed through education and experience.
Shakespeare sums it up when he wrote that some are born
great, some achieve greatness and some have greatness
thrust upon them. It may be added that some purchase it
and some take it by force.
This brings us to the various types of leadership:
i. Family Leadership: - This type of leadership
exists with the family arrangement since the
family setting varies from one place to another,
family leadership equally varies. The head of the
nuclear family is the father while in the extended
family is the eldest male. Some people assume
leadership positions in the family by virtue of their
birth e.g. the first son or daughter.
ii. Traditional Leadership: - This is also known as
situational leadership. It is based on the customs
and traditions of an area. In most cases, the
leaders are from royal family. The position is
hereditary from father to son or mostly the eldest
person in the family. These types of leaders are
regarded as being sacred and they are both
respected and feared. The people believe that
their source of power and authority is from the
gods and as such their words are final e.g. the
traditional rulers (Obas, Emirs, Igwe, Obi, Obong,
etc).
iii. Charismatic Leadership: - This leadership type
emerges as a result of certain natural qualities
possessed by the leader which enables him to
impress and influence the followers. This is based
on personal and good behaviour e.g. leaders of
social clubs, religious and other associations.
iv. Political Leadership: - This includes Presidents,
Governors, Local Government Chairman and other
government leaders. In most cases they assume
position of leadership by election. They put in so
much effort to sell themselves to the people and
win their confidence so that they will vote for
them. Some are also selected and appointed,
some buy the positions.
 v. Emergency Leadership: - This is also known as
temporal leadership. They are mostly appointed
in case of emergency situations. Some force
themselves into leadership positions during crisis
period e.g. military leaders in the event of a coup.
vi. Organisational Leadership: - This is also known
as institutional leadership. It includes leaders of
professional organizations, captains of industries,
heads of government or private institutions and
organizations. They are mostly appointed based
on their educational and professional
qualifications, experience and capabilities. These
leaders focus mainly on activities through which
the goals and objectives of the organization are
accomplished.
vii. Religious Leadership: This is leadership that
arises from the leader’s superior knowledge of
religious precepts. In other words, the leader is
because he or she is the person with the highest
religious power within the group.
viii. Professional Leadership: This is leadership that
arises from the leaders standing as the most
knowledgeable person in the professional setting
e.g. military leaders, heads of medical
establishments, etc.
3. In an organisation as ours, leadership is of paramount
importance and it is this that can easily distinguish and help
achieve our roles. Bad leadership will definitely ruin any
organisation. A leader, therefore, to achieve the respect arid
willing followership of his subordinates, must possess certain
traits and qualities.
Traits of a good leader.
5. Traits are signs being along behavioural patterns that
can be identified with, riot necessarily in a good leader.
Some of these are:
a. Bearing
b. Intelligence
c. Friendliness
d. Maturity
 a. Will Power
b. Enthusiasm
g. Approachability
h. Selflessness
Bearing:
This is the way the person’s turn out is at all times. His
manner of dressing arid the way he moves himself.
Personal appearance therefore, matters in the way a
good leader is viewed or seen.
Intelligence:
A good leader must possess this trait. 1--his, reasoning
must be seen to be logical and in the required or’ expected
direction. He should readily perceive essentials of the
roost difficult problems.
Friendliness:
A good leader must be friendly, lie must not necessarily
he over friendly or familiar with his subordinates
whereby respect is lost.
Maturity:
A good leader must be matured in his actions. Maturity
must he exhibited at all times. There should he attempt
at understanding, listening amid respect for other
people s views before comments or lectures on such
can be justified.
Will Power:
There should he the push or pep. The leader roust be
known and seen to have the determination to succeed
in all endeavours. This should not be confused with
mere wish.
Approachability:
The header must be easy to approach. He should be
accessible to his subordinates.
Selflessness:
The leader must certainly riot be seen to he selfish. He
should not be seen or known to sue his subordinates for
personal gain in any way
Enthusiasm:
The header should be seen to show keenness, joy arid
eagerness in the pursuit of his duties arid assignments.
 His actions should portray justification for the course of
his duties.
Leadership qualities
6. Over the years, there had been a lot of research into
what makes some leaders successful while others fail. Some
common qualities among well-known successful leaders
have been identified. Some of these are:
Knowledge:
A leader must possess the professional knowledge. He
should be conversant with the details of the job to
enable him assist subordinates in coming up. Regular
show of ignorance in professional knowledge to
subordinates lowers the respect amid certainly portrays
incompetence as a header A leader - should be
conversant with current affairs He should always strive
to maintain high level of knowledge.
Courage:
A leader must be seen to show courage arid exhibit a
high level of boldness. Lack of courage would easily be
seen and taken as cowardice.

Endurance:
There must be the perseverance in ability to work and
continue in the face of odds until the task is
accomplished.
Integrity:
A leader should regulate his life according to a proper
sense of right arid wrong. He should possess high
principles, which the must live up to.

Tact:
A leader must be tactful. He must have the right
approach in his relationship with others. He should be
polite and considerate in his dealings with others. This
will enable him deal successfully with others.
Judgment
Good leadership is dependent on the leader’s ability for
making right decisions. Usually this is enhanced by the
leader’s innate traits of intelligence, maturity and
 knowledge ability.
Loyalty
Every leader is the symbol of his unit. Thus, the most
loyal person in the unit must be the leader. If the
leader is disloyal and expects his followers to be loyal,
things can never work.

Initiative
The good leader is always thinking of new ways to
make things better. He does not wait to be directed
before he initiates right action. He is a proactively
motivated and oriented person.
Justice
A good leader should also be just to all his staff. No
matter his distaste for or disagreements with his staff,
the good leader thinks of himself as the father of the
whole unit whose primary responsibility is to ensure
justice, on equal basis, to all.

DATA ANALYSIS
1. Definition of Terms
(a) Statistics is a scientific method of collecting,
processing and analyzing of raw data
(information0 for the purpose of decision making.
(b) Data itself refers to raw (unprocessed) information
that can be collected as input for generation of
statistics.
(c) Data can further be divided into:
(i) Quantitative (numerical)
(ii) Qualitative (in words, pictures, objects) I
(iii) Empirical data (touch, sight, hearing, smell,
taste etc).
(d) Sample: Sample in statistics terms refers to the
range of information from which data can be
collected.
(e) Sampling can be done in different ways depending
on the aim of the analyst. E.g. random sampling,
systematic random sampling, stratified sampling,
cluster sampling and quota sampling
2. Tools for Analysis of Data
There are various methods for analysing data
depending on the nature of the sample population and the
aim and objective of the researcher (analyst).
These tools are wide variety ranging from ordinary
Percentage Pie Charts, Bar Charts, Correlation and
Regression Analysis, Binouli Distribution, Confidence
Intervals, Test of Hypothesis, Analysis of Variance and many
more.
The choice of method to be applied depends solely on
certain factors such as:
Nature of raw data e.g. filled questionnaires,
occurrence of events at a given time etc
Sample population – e.g. detainees, officers, visitors,
population of persons in a particular town.
Aim and objective of the research – determining the
number of detainees arrested for offences
relating to cannabis sativa etc.

3. Interpretation of Data
For the purpose of this writing we will limit our study to
the collection, collation, analysing and interpretation of data
i. e. “intelligence cycle”. Having background knowledge on
data, analysis and statistics in general we can have a
broader view of the intelligence cycle.

Intelligence Cycle
Intelligence has a variety of uses and interpretations.
For our purpose, intelligence is the end product of a complex
procedure, which provides facts, descriptions and informed
judgments. This process is called the intelligence process or
cycle. The process turns raw information into intelligence,
which is disseminated in a variety of products. These
products are normally used to provide understanding of the
violative activity to be countered and give warning of
developing trends.
Intelligence is clearly one of the keys to an effective
counter drug trafficking strategy. However, drug trafficking
poses a special kind of challenge to the intelligence effort in
terms of both collection and analysis. More than any other
intelligence fields, drug trafficking law enforcement are
action-oriented. To be useful, it must be acted upon. Thus,
there is often a hard choice to make between concealing our
knowledge and taking advantage of it.
The Intelligence Process
All enforcement offices regardless of size are involved
in some aspect of criminal intelligence. Whether or not an
office has an intelligence officer, it must undertake narcotics
intelligence activity. Narcotics intelligence, like general
criminal intelligence, incorporates a process, which consists
of five inter-related steps. These are information collection,
evaluation, collation, analysis and dissemination. It is
through these processes that raw information is refined into
useable intelligence.

A. Information Collection
It refers to the gathering of raw information on the
activities of those persons suspected to being involved in
narcotics activity. Information is obtained in two ways –
overtly and covertly. Most information is gathered overtly.
This information might include data on observed activities of
known smugglers and trafficker, their associates, individuals
with whom they have been seen, places they frequented,
and the license numbers and manufacturers of vehicles they
use. Overtly narcotics intelligence gathering also includes
obtaining information from the local prosecutor’s office,
newspapers and magazines, public records and documents,
license applications and other enforcement agencies. If
overtly produced information indicates that narcotics activity
exists, covert methods can be used to produce more
detailed information about the nature of these activities and
the identity of the individuals involved.
Covert intelligence is collected through the use of
physical surveillance, electronic surveillance, informants and
undercover officers. The unit should use physical
surveillance to keep track of movement and activities of
targeted suspects. Since physical surveillance alone cannot
provide the unit with the plans and motives of the suspects,
the unit should supplement its information with other covert
means. These may include the use of wire, tapes, tape
recorders and other electronic devices in accordance with
legal policy requirements. The officer is able to learn what
was said during a conversation between suspects. Electronic
surveillance can provide the officer with evidence that will
tie a suspect directly to crime.

B. Evaluation
This mainly consists of determining whether or not a
piece of information is accurate, and it is principle done by
those officers who have definite knowledge of the content of
the information and the source. Hence, the officer providing
the information should report on the reliability of the source
and credibility of the information before information is
passed along to be collated analysed, so that the individuals
concerned with these latter steps can make accurate
judgment. The information should be given a grade or code,
which indicates its value. Thus, a letter, number, or colour
code should be given to indicate the validity of information
and the reliability of the source. For instance, a number code
of ‘1’, ‘2’, ‘3’ and ‘4’ can be used to designate whether a
piece of information is respectively confirmed, probable,
plausible or improbable. A letter code can be used in the
same manner to categorize the source of the information as
to the reliability, i. e. highly reliable, general reliable,
doubtful and unknown.
Hence, the users of the information are provided with
an immediate and accurate assessment of the value of the
information.

C. Collation
This is the third step in the intelligence process and it
consists of organizing information or raw data into some
logical sequence or pattern by which a particular operation
or on-going activity can be understood. Information, as it is
obtained flows in bits and pieces from different sources in
non-chronological sequence. Hence, it must be arranged in
such a way that relationships are discernible. Thus, in turn, it
will facilitate the filing, cross filing, and retrieval of the
various pieces of information. Collation also facilitates the
analysis of information.

D. Analysis
The fourth step in the process is basically the
separation of potentially valuable information from worthless
or inaccurate data, and the conversion of the information
into finished intelligence. In a large enforcement office, one
or more officers may be assigned the role of intelligence
analysis. On the other hand the entire intelligence function
in a small office may be the responsibility of only one
individual. Regardless of the unit size, the primary
contribution of the analyst is his or her ability to piece
together the bits of information to form a working
hypothesis.

E. Dissemination
This is the final step in the intelligence function. The
first four steps result in an intelligence report. This report is
submitted to management to assist them in making
decisions. Therefore, the report must be objective, and must
clearly distinguish between facts and assumptions. In
addition to a summary of the information considered having
value, the report should contain conclusions based on that
information. The intelligence reports should be routed to the
first-line supervisor from the analyst. Dissemination to other
officers should be at the discretion of management, and
should be done based on the purpose and content of the
report, the need-to-know, the confidentiality of the
information or source, and the progress of the ongoing
information.
4. These are things that make intelligence to have some
additional values so as decision making can be done with
relative ease. These things include:
(ii) Pictures – pictures of scenes, persons, and
articles etc that are directly linked to the report
in question.
 (iii) Graphs/Sketches – graphical representation of
some statistical figures or sketches of areas or
building/streets which are of primary concern to
the intelligence generated.
(iv) Manuscripts – original handwritings, signature,
thumbprints of persons, stamps, seals, logo and
hand written documents.
5. Requirements for Efficient Data Analysis
For data to be efficiently analysed from raw data, collection
point to processed information stage certain conditions are
required:
(i) Accuracy – whatever piece of information that
is used must be checked properly to avoid
incorporating fictitious figures and stories into
the process.
(ii) Clarity – writings and language used in
intelligence reports writing must be very clear
to the person(s) it’s addressed to.
(iii) Relevance – all information must be certified
relevant to the issue in question.
(iv) Timeliness – only intelligence information
received at the right tome can be used. If
information received either as raw data or
processed information comes late, it loses its
relevance.
(v) Security – raw data as well as processed
information should be secured as only those
persons who have the “need to know” should
have access to such intelligence. This is very
important so that subversion, espionage due to
information leakage can be prevented.
(vi) Brevity – information analysis process needs to
be in such a way that information contained in
the reports are clear, concise, all encompassing,
relevant and straight to the point
(unambiguous).

6. Uses of Analysed Data

 (i) Planning/Execution of all activities based on
sound analysed data are almost 100% likely to
succeed because all precautions and provisions
will be taken into account during planning and
execution.
(ii) Resources Allocation – priorities are given to
areas where certain problems of resources
shortage (manpower, materials, and finances)
are indicated in analysed data reports.
(iii) Forecasts – projections can be made (based on
sound analysed data) of what to expect from
certain executed or yet to be executed projects
e. g. yearly, quarterly, monthly projections.
(iv) Targets Setting – targets can also be set from
analysed data bearing in mind projections made
for the future so that performances can be
appraised.
(v) Effective Management of Men and Materials –
execution of plans, operation based on sound
intelligence usually leads to effective
management of men and material resources.

7. Consequences of Defective Data Analysis

(i) Misplacing of priorities – defective data
analysis can lead to misplacing of priorities
since areas that may have been highlighted in a
defective analysis is expected to be given
attention.
(ii) Waste of Resources – since resources
committed are expected to yield results
(positive), any failure of planning, and execution
of planned operations will definitely be a waste
of resources committed towards it.
(iii) Loss of Credibility – decisions made based on
defective intelligence information are bound to
dent the image of the authorities, government,
and or agencies expected to work with such
 information in future will be doubtful of its
sources e.g. Ira weapons of mass destruction.
(iv) Aiding of Rumors, Half Truth and Propaganda –
if authorities that are supposed to be relied
upon for credible analysed information are not
dependable, rumours, half truths, and negative
propaganda can easily be circulated which will
in turn aid subversion activities.

8. Data Analysis in NDLEA

Like all security agencies, activities of NDLEA are based
on analysed data. The inputs used for these analyses
are:
(a) UIF(User Information Form)
(b) TIF (Traffickers Information Form)
(c) Returns on Arrests & Seizures from State /Special
Area Commands across the nation.
(d) Foreign Arrests involving Nigerians usually
communicated to NDLEA by sisters agencies e.g.
NIA, SSS, Police, Interpol, Agencies involved in
drug war from other countries e.g. DEA, Her
Majesty Custom Services, Esperlo de droga etc.
(e) Threat Analysis received from State /Special Area
Commands across the nation.
Information received from the above sources are
constantly collated, sorted, analysed, and submitted to the
authorities monthly, quarterly, yearly or as exigencies of
times may demand.
Methods/Formal Used for Analysis
The analysis carried out can be described as social
research, which can be quantitative or qualitative.
Quantitative Analysis such as number of Nigerians
arrested for drug trafficking offences in UK and Qualitative
can be the age range of those Nigerians arrested for drug
offences in UK or even their state of origin in Nigeria.
Other analyses usually carried out are based on UIF
(Users Information Forms) and TIF (Traffickers Information
Forms). These are not only aimed at improving drug supply
activities but also re-enforcing Drug Demand Reduction
activities of the NDLEA as well. Areas where successes were
achieved can be easily be identified so that necessary
amendments, precautions, planning, and execution can be
made.
Aims and Objectives of Data Analysis in NDLEA
(i) To identify areas of greater success records with a
view to sustaining modest achievements recorded.
(ii) Enhanced planning of activities based on target
areas, noted and forecast made about the future
trends.
(iii) Used in setting targets and appraising previous
performances
(iv) Devices means of carrying out successful execution
of DDRD and supply reduction activities bearing in
mind target areas, black spots etc e.g. schools,
age, group and markets.
(v) Discovering new methods used for drug trafficking
and also new substance of abuse, which were
hitherto not in the legal prohibition list for further
necessary actions by the authorities concerned.

DISCIPLINARY OFFENCES AND PROCEDURE

The topic disciplinary offences and procedure is further

divided into:
a. Definition of terms
b. NDLEA Regulations, specification of disciplinary
offences
c. Unspecified disciplinary offence
d. Junior staff disciplinary procedure
e. Senior staff disciplinary procedure
f. Penalties
g. Appeal procedure
h. Effecting penalties
a. Definition Of Terms: The following terms call for
definition:
i. Discipline: Discipline is defined as an instruction,
comprehending the communication of knowledge
 and training to observe and act in accordance with
rules and orders.
ii. Procedure: The mode of proceeding by which a
legal right is enforced.
iii. Disciplinary Proceedings: Proceedings brought
against persons to secure his or her censure,
suspension or disbarment for various acts of
unprofessional conduct.
iv. Regulations: The act of regulating a rule or order
prescribed for management or government, a
regulating principle; a precept.
v. Offences: A felony or misdemeanour a breach or
violation of law for which penalty is prescribed.
vi. Rule: An established standard, guide or
regulation, prescribed guide for conduct or action,
regulation or principle.
vii. Appeal: A complaint to a higher tribunal or
authority of an error or injustice sought to be
corrected or reversed.
viii. Adjudicator: Any officer to whom power to
exercise disciplinary control is delegated.
ix. Penalty: A punishment for breaking a rule, law or
contract.
x. Officer: A person commissioned to hold office of
trust, command or authority, in an institution or
organisation.
xi. Interdiction: A prohibitory act, order or decree.
xii. HE: For the purpose of this paper the word ‘‘he’’
refers to officer.

b. NDLEA regulation specification of disciplinary

offences:
Schedule 1 to NDLEA Regulations 2001 has provided and
specified the various offences against discipline.

The rules also provides for punishment and penalties

for infringement against each offences.
 The disciplinary offences specified in schedule 1 to
NDLEA Regulations 2001 in its operating words provides as
follows:
‘Any officer of the Agency who commits any of
the following acts by commission or omission
shall be guilty of an offence against discipline
and shall be punished as herein after provided:

1. Absence from or Lateness to Duty.

Any officer who absents himself from duty or reports
late to duty without leave or reasonable excuse shall
be:
(i) Warned in the first instance
(ii) Reprimanded in the second instance.
(iii) Terminated from the services of the Agency where
the
Lateness or absence persists.

2. Desertion
Any officer who is absent without leave for twenty-one
or more consecutive days shall be guilty of the offence
of desertion and shall be terminated from the Agency
as a deserter.

3. Breach of Confidence
Any officer who:
(i) Divulges any matter which is his duty to keep
secret; or
(ii) gives notice, directly or indirectly to a person
against whom a warrant or summons has been or is
about to be issued, except in the lawful execution of
that warrant or service of that summons; or
(iii) Without proper authority, communicates to the
public,
press, or to an unauthorized person, any matter
connected with the Agency; or
(iv) Without proper authority shows to a person
outside the agency any book or document the
property of the Government or of the Agency.
 Shall be guilty of an offence and shall be: -
(a) demoted by one rank in the first instance;
and
(b) terminated from the service of the Agency
in the second instance.

(4) Corrupt Practices,

Any officer who;
(i) Seeks by influence to obtain promotion or other
advantage in the
Agency;
(ii) Receives a bribe or extorts money from
anybody; or
(iii) fails to account for or to make proper true
return of any property received by him in his
official capacity, or fails to account satisfactorily
if called upon by the Chairman/Chief Executive to
do so, for any property in his possession or
received by him otherwise than in his official
capacity; or
(iv) directly or indirectly solicits, accept; or receives
in his official capacity a gratuity, present,
reward, subscription or testimonial without the
approval of the Chairman/Chief Executive; or
(v) Improperly uses his character and position as A
member of staff of the Agency for his private
advantage;
Shall be guilty of an offence and shall have his
appointment terminated.

(5) Damage to Agency Property.

Any officer who:
(i) willfully or negligently causes any waste, loss or
damage in respect of any article or clothing or
accoutrement or in respect of any book, document
or other property of the Agency issued to him, used
by him or entrusted in his care; or
(iii) fails to report any loss or damage to clothing or
other articles supplied to him, however caused; or
 (iv) willfully damages any property of the Agency; or
(iv) Carelessly handles any property of the Agency
recklessly drives any vehicle of the Agency in his
custody or which is assigned to him for official use
and thereby causes damage to it. shall be guilty of
an offence and shall lose seniority by one year and
shall be liable to bear the cost of repair or
replacement or the damaged items or articles.

(6) Disgraceful/Discreditable Conduct

Any officer who:
(i) acts in a disorderly manner; or
(ii) Engages in conduct of cruel, indecent or
unnatural kind; or
(iii) Assaults a member of the Agency; or
(iv) Acts in any manner prejudicial to discipline or
unbecoming of a
Member of the Agency; or
(v) uses threatening or insubordinate language to his
superior officer.
Shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable
to:
(a) confinement to cell not exceeding fourteen days
in
the first instance, in case of junior officers.
(b) reprimand in first instance, in case of senior
officers;
(C) Have his appointment terminated where the act
or conduct persists.

(7) Disobedience to Order

(i) Any officer who disobeys or without good and
sufficient cause omits or neglects to carry out
any lawful order written or otherwise shall be
guilty of an offence against discipline and shall
be;
(a) confined in case of junior officers; and
(b) reprimanded and deployed in the case of
senior officers.
(8) Drinking during office hours: -
Any officer who:
(i) is unfit for duty through drinking/taking
intoxicating liquor shall
Be guilty of the offence of drunkenness.
(ii) Demands or endeavors to persuade any
person to give him or to
Purchase or obtain for him any an”
intoxicating liquor whilst
He is on duty; or
(iii) Enters whilst on duty any premises for the
sale of liquor or where
Liquor is stored, distributed and used with intent
to drink;
Shall be guilty of an offence and shall be: --
(a) Demoted by one rank in the first instance;
and
(b) Terminated from the services of the Agency
where the drunkenness
Persists.
(iv) For the purposes of this rule, a person shall be
treated as being
Drunk if owing to influence of alcohol or any
drug whether alone or
in combination with any other circumstance
he is unfit to be
entrusted with his duties.
(9) Using Illicit Substances:
Any officer who without the consent of his superior
officer: --
(i) receives from any person, illicit substances;
or
(ii) demands or endeavours to persuade any
person to give him or to purchase or obtain
for him any illicit substances; or
(iii) enters any premises for the sale of illicit
substances or where drug is stored,
distributed and used. With intent to use such
 illicit substances;
Shall have his appointment terminated.

(10) Falsehood or Prevarication:

Any officer who
(i) Knowingly makes or signs a false statement
in an official document or book; or
(ii) Willfully or negligently makes any false,
misleading or inaccurate statement or report;
or
(iii) Without good and sufficient cause, destroys
or mutilates an official document or record or
alters or erases any entry therein;
Shall be guilty of an offence and shall have his
Appointment terminated

(11) Insubordinate or Oppressive Conduct,

Any officer who:
(i) is insubordinate by word or demeanour shall
be guilty of an offence and shall be liable
to;
(a) Confinement in case of junior officers; and
reprimand in case of senior officers; and
(b) Termination if the insubordination persists.
(ii) is oppressive or tyrannical in his conduct
relating to an inferior in rank shall be guilty of
an offence and shall be demoted by one rank;
(iii) Uses obscene, abusive or insulting
language to a member of the Agency shall be
guilty of an offence and shall be liable to:
(a) Confinement in the cell in case of junior
officers, and
(b) Reprimand in case of senior
officers; and
(c) Termination if the offence persists

(12) Malingering,
Any officer who feigns or exaggerates any sickness
or injury with a view to evading duty shall be guilty
 of an offence and b~ reprimanded, and may lose
his earnings for the period of the malingering.
(13) Dereliction of Duty
Any officer who: --
(i) neglects, or without good and sufficient cause
omits promptly and diligently to attend to or
carry out act which is his duty as a member
of the Agency shall be guilty of an offence
and shall be warned in first instance and be
demoted by one rank thereafter.

(iii) withholds a complaint or report concerning

an officer of the Agency shall be guilty of an
offence and shall be liable for reprimand and
redeployment;
(iv) idles or gossips while on duty; shall be guilty
of an offence and shall be warned;
(v) fails to work at his beat in accordance with
orders, or sleeps on beat or other duty, or
leaves his beat, point or other place of duty
to which he has been ordered without due
permission or sufficient cause; shall be guilty
of an offence and be reprimanded.
(vi) By carelessness or neglect permits a suspect
to escape shall be guilty of an offence and
shall be terminated.
(vii) Knowingly fails, to report the whereabouts of
a drug offender or fails to make efforts for
making him amenable to justice shall be
guilty of an offence and be liable to demotion
in the first instance and his appointment
terminated in the second instance.
(viii) Fails to report any matter, which is his duty
to report, shall be guilty of an offence and
shall be reprimanded and redeployed if in a
command appointment.
(ix) Fails to report anything that he knows
concerning a drug or drug related offence,
or fails to disclose any evidence, which he or
 any person within his knowledge can give
against a suspect, or defendant to a drug
charge shall be guilty of an offence and shall
be reprimanded.
(x) Omits to make an entry in an official
document or book shall be guilty of an
offence and shall be warned.
(xi) neglects, or without good and sufficient
cause, omits to carry out any instruction of
an NDLEA Medical Officer, or, while absent
from duty on account of sickness does any
act which is calculated to retard his return to
duty. Shall be guilty of an offence and be
reprimanded; and may lose his earnings for
the period stayed away.
(xii) Leaves his beat without having been
properly relieved or otherwise absents
himself from any place where his duty to be,
shall be guilty of an offence and shall be
reprimanded: where however the absence
leads to any incidence prejudicial to the
interest of the Agency his appointment shall
be terminated.

(14) Improper Conduct:

ANY OFFICER WHO;
(i) Borrows money from an inferior in rank shall
be guilty of an offence and shall be
reprimanded.
(ii) Fails to pay a lawful debt; shall be guilty of
an offence and shall be made to pay the debt
and be reprimanded, in the first instance.
(iii) Carries on any trade or business without proper
authority, shall be guilty of an offence and shall
be warned.
(iv) Carries on any profession or accepts any other
paid employment without proper authority shall
be guilty of an offence and his appointment
shall be terminated.
 (v) Makes an anonymous communication to the
Chairman/Chief Executive or to a superior
officer, shall be guilty of an offence and shall
loose seniority for one year.
(vi) Without proper authority, canvasses, using the
name or title of the Chairman/Chief Executive or
any superior NDLEA officer or other servant of
the Government with regard to any matter
concerning the Agency shall be guilty of an
offence and shall be reprimanded.
(vii) Signs or circulates a petition or document with
regard to any matter concerning the Agency
except through the proper channel of
correspondence to the Chairman/Chief
Executive Shall be guilty of an offence and shall
be warned.

(15) Uncleanness,
ANY OFFICER WHO IS improperly dressed or is
dirty or untidy in his person, clothing or
accoutrements shall be guilty of an offence and shall
be warned in the first instance: reprimanded in the
second instance, and shall lose seniority for six
months if the uncleanness persists.

(16) Unlawful Exercise of Authority,

ANY OFFICER WHO;
(i) without a good and sufficient cause
carries out an illegal operation /or
makes an unlawful or unnecessary arrest
shall be guilty of an offence and shall have
his appointment terminated.
(ii) Uses unnecessary violence on any suspect
or other person with whom he may be
brought into contact in the execution of his
duty shall be guilty of an offence and shall
be reprimanded.
(iii) is uncivil to a member of the public shall be
guilty of an offence and shall be warned in
 the first instance: where however the
offence persists he shall be deranked.

(17) Gross Misconduct

Any officer who without lawful authority associates
with a drug trafficker or an offender or their
relations to the prejudice of the Agency shall be
guilty of an offence and shall have his
appointment terminated.

(18) Unapproved Studies,

Any officer, who under goes any course of study in
any institution of learning without the approval of
the Agency, shall be guilty of an offence and shall
be warned and shall discontinue the study.

(19) Conspiracy, attempt, aiding

and concealment of the commission of
offences
Any officer who conspires, attempts, aids or and
conceals the commission of any of the foregoing
offences or breaches the provisions of the code of
conduct, shall be guilty of the offence attempted
and shall be punished as if he actually committed
the attempted offence.

(20) Conduct Prejudicial to Discipline,

Any officer who;
(i) Exhibits any conduct or act of negligence
prejudicial to good order and discipline, shall
be guilty of an offence and shall be
reprimanded: provided that where the act
leads to grave consequence his appointment
shall be terminated.
(ii) Engages in partisan political activities. Shall
be guilty of an offence and shall have his
appointment terminated.

(21) Inappropriate or Immodest Dressing

Any officer whether in uniform or in plain dress, who
appears in the office or anywhere else, in his official
capacity in a manner considered improper,
inappropriate or immodest. Shall be guilty of an
offence and shall be warned: where however the
offence persists he shall lose seniority by six
months.

(22) Conduct against Posting/Transfer

Any officer who:
(i) Out rightly refuses or delays to report for
posting/transfer; shall be guilty of an offence
and be made to report for the posting
immediately and shall be deranked by one
level.
(ii) Seeks to influence, or who seeks the
influence of another officer with a view to
obtaining considerations for posting/transfer
shall be guilty of an offence and shall be
reprimanded and if he continues he shall lose
seniority by six months.
(iii) Engages in fabrication and/or circulation of
rumors in matters concerning
posting/transfer, shall be guilty of an offence
and shall be warned.

(23) Rumour/Unofficial Information

Any officer who spreads rumour, whether orally, or in
writing, by signal or otherwise, reports to or informs
anybody, within or outside the Agency, any
information relating to the operations of the Agency
or uses words calculated at creating despondency or
unnecessary alarm, shall be guilty of an offence and
shall lose seniority by six months.

(25) Theft
Any officer who;
(i) converts the property of the Agency to his
own;
 (ii) appropriates property of the Agency under
his care;
(iii) fraudulently enriches himself by whatever
means;
(iv) steal the property of a fellow officer;
Shall be guilty of an offence and shall be
dismissed from the Agency.

(26) Tampering With Exhibits

Any person who unlawfully removes, conceals,
destroys or in any way tampers with the drug
popularly known as Cocaine, LSD, heroin or any
other similar drug or tampers with monetary
exhibits or any other property seized from any
person or otherwise in the possession or custody
of the Agency shall be guilty of an offence against
discipline and be terminated and shall be
prosecuted.

(27) Alteration, Falsification And Presentation of

False Certificate/Credentials
Any officer who:
(i) Uses any certificate, credentials, or any other
documents other than his to apply for
employment into the Agency; or
(ii) At the point of entry into the Agency presents
any certificate, credentials, or any other
documents other than his; or
(iii) alters, forges, falsifies in any manner
whatsoever any certificate, credentials or
curriculum vitae intending to gain
employment into the Agency or facilitate
promotion, upgrading, placement or
enhancement of position in the Agency; shall
be guilty of an offence and shall be liable to
termination from the employment of the
Agency.

C. “Unspecified Disciplinary Offences”:

 In addition to the offences listed above, the following are
considered as offences against discipline despite the fact
that they are not specified or spelt out in Schedule 1 to
NDLEA Regulations, 2001:
a. Travelling out of the country without permission:
b. Suppression of information
c. Sexual harassment
d. Lost and misuse of firearms
e. False identity and impersonation.
f. Unlawful/illegal meeting and assembly.
g. Use of vernacular during official hours.
h. Loitering and other sundry behaviours.

D. Junior Staff Disciplinary Procedure:

Part X of NDLEA Rules on Discipline has made express
provisions on the procedure to be adopted in disciplinary
cases involving junior staff.
Rule 54 provides that a junior officer who is being
investigated shall be defaulted by formally charging him of
the offences against discipline, which he is alleged to have
committed.
Rule 55 provides that the investigating officer
authorised or directed to make a charge in respect of an
offence against discipline, may make it in writing, by
memorandum in the form prescribed in Schedule III to the
rule.
Rule 58 provides that upon a charge being received by
the junior officer so charged, he shall within three days make
and send through his immediate superior officer a reply
which may also be in the form prescribe in Schedule IV to
the rule.
Rule 59 provides that upon the receipt of the reply to
the charge, if the reply is a denial, nothing more need be
written by the officer, but if it is an admission he may add on
a separate sheet anything he may have to say in
explanation.
Rule 60 provides that if the reply is an admission, the
adjudicator may without further action award one or more of
the punishment prescribe by rule ‘100’ in respect of the
offence admitted.
Rule 61 provides that when a junior officer denies the
commission of any offence charged against him in his reply
to a memorandum charging him with an offence against
discipline, the adjudicator shall, without undue delay,
appoint a time and place for the investigation and direct the
member charged to attend for the purpose of the
investigation such time and place as will in the opinion of the
adjudicator give the member charged every reasonable
opportunity to collect and produce evidence.
Rule 62 provides that when a memorandum preferring
a charge/charges has been served on the defaulter, the
summary investigation shall be completed expeditiously
within a period of not more than three months from the date
of the service of the memorandum or from the date of
ending of any period of postponement or adjournment.
Rule 64 provides that the adjudicator shall select the
most convenient place for the hearing of the charge but
generally the place selected shall be in the NDLEA Command
or Unit or Department in which the NDLEA officer charged is
serving.
Rule 65 provides that the room or place in which the
proceedings are conducted shall be termed the “ORDERLY
ROOM” and the proceedings shall be termed the “ORDERLY
ROOM PROCEEDINGS”.
Rule 68 provides that except where the appropriate
authority directs to the contrary a person not connected with
the proceedings shall not be admitted into the orderly room
unless the adjudicator is satisfied that there is a good and
sufficient reason to admit such person.
Rule 69 entitles the defaulter to make his own defence
during the cause of the proceeding but shall not be entitled
to be represented by any person whatsoever.
Rule 70 enjoin the adjudicator at his discretion and if
he considers it necessary in the interest of justice offer
advice to the defaulter or any matter concerning procedures.
Rule 71 empowers the adjudicator to require any
officer to attend the orderly room proceedings for the
purpose of being examined as a witness and such officer is
duly bound to honour the invitation.

Rule 72 also enjoins the adjudicator to request any

person to attend the proceedings and give evidence or to
provide any document likely to be material evidence.
Rule 73 provides that a charge against one or more
defaulters may be investigated during the same orderly
room proceedings either together or separately.
Rule 74 provides that if a defaulter was having had
due and reasonable notice of the time and place appointed
for the proceedings does not appear, the adjudicator may
after considering any ascertainable circumstances of the
absence proceed with the proceeding or adjournment to
some future date.
Rule 75 provides that if the defaulter is present the
adjudicator shall state the substance of the charge to him
and shall ask him if he admits the truth of the charge.
Rule 76 provides that if the defaulter admits the truth
of the charge it shall not be necessary to take evidence in
support of the charge and the adjudicator shall record a
finding of guilt in respect of the charge admitted.
Rule 77 provides that if the defaulter does not admit
the truth of the charge or does not refuses to answer to the
charge, the adjudicator shall proceed to hear the evidence in
support of the charge and the evidence of his witnesses if
any.
Rule 78 provides that if any objection is taken for any
alleged defect therein either in substance or in form or if
objection is taken for variance between the charge and the
evidence adduced at the hearing the adjudicator shall make
such order for the amendment of the charge as it appears to
him to be desirable in the interest of justice provided that if
any variance appears to the adjudicator to be such that the
defaulter has been thereby deceived or misled, he may at
the request of the defaulter adjourn the proceeding to some
future date.
Rule 79 provides that the adjudicator at anytime
during the proceeding for sufficient reasons may either at
the request of the defaulter or of his own volition adjourn the
proceeding from time to time.
Rule 80 enjoined the adjudicator in all cases no matter
the charge take full note in writing of the oral evidence given
before him such evidence shall then be signed by the
defaulter or the witness as the case may be and
countersigned by the adjudicator.
Rule 81 provides that the adjudicator shall himself
conduct the examination of the witnesses in support of the
charge and of the defaulter and his witnesses.
Rule 82 enjoins the adjudicator to recall any witness at
anytime during the proceedings.
Rules 83 provides that the rules as to admissibility of
evidence shall as far as possible be those followed by civil
courts in the Federation.
Rule 84 empowers the defaulter to cross-examine any
witness giving evidence in support of the charge and may
address any question to a witness for his defence.
Rule 85 provides that if the defaulter addresses any
irrelevant, impertinent or interprets questions to a witness,
the adjudicator may disallow such questions to the witness
and may direct that any further cross-examination of or any
questions to the witness shall be directed through him and
such direction shall be recorded by the adjudicator.
Rule 86 provides that any evidence given in any
language not understood by the defaulter shall be
interpreted to him.
Rule 87 provides that if after hearing the evidence in
support of the charge and the adjudicator is of the opinion
that there is no sufficient evidence to support the charge, he
shall dismiss the charge otherwise he shall call on the
defaulter for his defence.
Rule 88 provides that if the defaulter is called upon for
his defence, he may give evidence and may call any witness
to give evidence on his behalf.
Rule 89 provides that in the event of the defaulter
declining to give evidence on his behalf or remaining silent,
the adjudicator shall enter a finding of guilt.
 Rule 90 provides that after the taking of evidence is
concluded the adjudicator shall if he considers the charge on
the evidence adduced to be not proven, shall records a
finding of not guilty and shall dismiss the charge, but if he
considers the charge proven he shall record a finding of
guilty.
Rule 91 provides that after a recording of guilty the
adjudicator shall invite the defaulter to tender any statement
he may wish in mitigation of the offence and any statement
so tendered shall be recorded in writing.
Rule 92 provides that after considering the statement if
any, made by the defaulter in mitigation of the offence, the
adjudicator shall;
Recommend one or more of the punishment provided in
rule 100.
ii. Forward his judgment and recommendation to the
head of the directorate/unit or command.

Rule 93 provides that the head of Directorate, Unit or

Command shall task or appoint another officer senior in rank
to the adjudicator to review the case and affirm or reject the
conclusion of the adjudicator.
Rule 94 provides that the adjudicator’s report and
reviewing officer’s report shall be forwarded to the
Directorate of Inspectorate Services for review.
Rule 95 empowers the department of discipline to
review the report and prepare a brief to the Junior State
Disciplinary Committee (JSDC).
Rule 96 provides that the JSDC shall review the case
and make recommendation to the Chairman/Chief Executive
through the Director General/Secretary.
Lastly Rule 97 empowers the Chairman/Chief
Executive to consider the recommendations, confirm, or give
further directives.

E. Senior Staff Disciplinary Procedure:

Rule 47 provides for procedure under which senior officers
are disciplined, the rule provides as follows:
“Where a superior officer is accused of any misconduct,
as per the provisions of these rules, the conduct of any
disciplinary proceedings thereto shall specified below:”
i. That the Directorate/Command or Unit under
which the superior officer is serving shall conduct
a preliminary investigation and thereafter forward
its report including recommendations to the
Chairman/Chief Executive through the
DG/Secretary.
ii. The DG/Secretary or the Chairman/Chief Executive
as the case may be may order discrete
investigation into the allegation by the Directorate
of Inspectorate Services.
iii. Where the Chairman/Chief Executive is informed
of an offence against discipline by a superior
officer through a petition or any other means
whatsoever, he may direct that discrete
investigation be conducted into the petition by the
Directorate of Inspectorate Services or any other
Department he may deem fit.
iv. Where the report of the investigation confirms the
accusation or any facts thereof. The authorised
officer shall formerly issue a query to the
defaulting officer to which he must respond within
24 hours of receipt of same.

v. The response to the query shall be forwarded to

the department of discipline for review and brief
on the case forwarded to the SSDC.
vi. The SSDC shall review the case and either request
for further investigation/comments or take a
decision.
vii. The SSDC shall make recommendation to the
Chairman/Chief Executive through
Secretary/Director General, who shall consider the
recommendation, confirm or give further
directives.
viii. Punishment approved by the Chairman/Chief
Executive shall be promptly communicated to the
 offending superior officer using the format in
Schedule V to these rules.

F. Penalties:
Schedule 1 of NDLEA Regulations 2001 has
specified various penalties for violating the offence against
discipline. Furthermore, Rule 98/99 of Part Rules X on
discipline provides as follows:
Rule 98 provides that any officer who by reason of any
act of omission or commission;
a. is guilty of any offence set out in Schedule 1 to
these rules or;
b. is guilty of violation of any of the provisions of the
code of conduct shall be guilty of an offence
against discipline.
Rule 99 provides that any officer who is guilty of any
offence against discipline shall be liable to any of the
following punishment:
Retirement
a. Dismissal
b. Termination of appointment
c. Reduction in rank
d. Withholding or deferment of increment
e. Warning
f. Reprimand
g. Fine not exceeding N1,000
h. Loss of seniority
i. Confinement to barracks not exceeding 14 days
j. Fatigue or other duties or drill punishment not
exceeding 5 hours.

G. Appeal Procedure:
The rules under Part X on rules on discipline provides for the
procedure under which an appeal can be heard and
determined.

Rule 106 provides that any officer who is found guilty

of an offence and awarded any punishment in respect of any
offence against discipline shall have the right to appeal
against any such finding or punishment to the competent
appellate authority within 14 days after the communication
of the punishment to him.
Rule 107 provides that the appellate authority for
appeals against the finding and punishment recommended
by the adjudicator in respect of offences against discipline
shall;
i. in respect of any junior officer be the Chairman/Chief
Executive.
ii. in respect of any senior officer be the Agency Board.
Rule 109 provides that the junior officer shall lodge an
appeal with the Director of Administration & Finance who
communicated the punishment within 14 days of the receipt
by an officer of notification of the punishment.
Rule 110 provides that the appeal shall be attached to
the notification of punishment and be in the form prescribed
by Schedule VI to the rules.
Rule 111 provides that the Director of Administration &
Finance who communicated the punishment on receipt of
the notice of appeal shall forward the appeal together with
the investigation papers and his comments to the competent
appellate authority.
Lastly Rule 112 provides that the competent appellate
authority shall within the limits of its power have to increase,
confirm, reduce, or annul any punishment imposed in
respect of any offence against discipline and May;
i. Deal with the appeal or without hearing the
appellant in person.
ii. Refer the paper back to the adjudicator who
conducted investigation for further evidence to be
taken.
iii. Order that a new investigation be made by
another competent Adjudicator.

H. Effecting Penalties:
The rules to Part X of rules on discipline provide
procedures through which penalties or punishment arising
from the decision of either the JSDC or SSDC is to be effected
to the defaulting officer.
 Rule 100 provides that punishment approved by the
Chairman/Chief Executive shall be communicated to the
defaulter using the format specified in Schedule V to the
rules.
Rule 102 provides that where the punishment awarded
to an officer in respect of any offence against discipline is
dismissal, the dismissal shall have effect from the date the
award of that punishment is brought to the notice of the
defaulter, or if the earlier, the date on which notice of that
award is served on him by post at his last known address
and it is thereafter presumed to have been duly delivered.
Rule 103 provides that it is the responsibility of the
Director of Administration & Finance to communicate the
prescribed punishment in respect of an offence against
discipline by any officer to ensure that the particulars of the
punishment awarded are published in the NDLEA Order.
Rule 104 provides that the record of punishment
awarded to any officer shall be entered in the officer’s record
of service.
Lastly rules 105 provides that any one or more
punishment entered in the record of service of any officer
may, by order of the Chairman/Chief Executive be expunged
in recognition of a subsequent specific act of good service or
of bravery

NDLEA STRUCTURE, FUNCTIONS, AND GENERAL

CORRESPONDENCE

PREAMBLE
1. The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA)
was established by Decree 48 of 1989 now refers to Laws of
the Federation of Nigeria cap 253.
2. It was charged with the responsibility of preventing illicit
cultivation, production, manufacture of, illicit traffic and use
of drugs.
3. To achieve this aim, the Agency has been structured as
provided by the enabling acts.
4. The 3 statutory directorates are the General and Assets
Investigation, Prosecution and Drug Demand Reduction.
5. The powers to establish more directorates in the course
of development of the Agency to assist in the performance of
its duties, and functions led to the expansion of the Agency’s
operational and administrative structure.
These new structure or directorates are:
a. Directorate of Training & Manpower Development
b. Directorate of Assets Laundering
c. Directorate of Inspectorate
d. Directorate of intelligence
e. Directorate of Chairman’s Office
f. Abuja Liaison Service
6. Each directorate is headed by a director.
7. The secretariat, which constitutes the central
administration, is headed by the Secretary/Director General.

2. NDLEA Structure and Function

We will take a look at the term structure before outlining
the Agency’s structure and its functions. Structure can
simply be defined as a particular system or pattern or
procedure of running an organization or institution. It is
therefore designed to serve a purpose, which ultimately will
manifest in the production of goods and services.

3. Functions of the Directorates

3.1 Directorates of Chairman/Chief Executive’s Office
The functions of this office are:
i. Co-ordination of the activities of all departments
under the CCE’s office.
ii. Collate and evaluate weekly/monthly directorate
progress reports and advice the CCE on matters
arising there from.
iii. Collate and evaluate monthly, quarterly and annual
reports from the state commands and advice the
CCE on matters arising there from.
iv. Other departments under the CCE’s office shall
perform their duties as specified in the NDLEA
Order.
 v. Carry out other assignments as may be assigned by
the CCE.

3.2 Secretary/Director-General’s Office

The Secretary/DG’s office functions as the Agency’s
general administrative secretariat.

3.3 Directorate of Investigation

This directorate is the Agency’s major operational and
intelligence procurement organ. Its functions include:
i. Sourcing for information
ii. Cultivation, handling and exploitation of sources and
agents
iii. Investigation of cases (General, Assets and Money
Laundering)
iv. Interrogation of suspects including drug deportees
v. Interdiction
vi. Surveillance
vii. Custody of exhibits
viii. Custody of detainees
ix. Analysis of suspected illicit substances
x. Monitoring of movement of persons goods at
entry/exit points as well as other designated
locations.
xi. Custody, application and maintenance of technical
operation equipment
xii. Preparation of case files, in liaison with prosecution
and intelligence directorates.
xiii. Co-ordinate and direct the operational activities of
the state commands to ensure standardization,
professionalism and effectiveness of operational
activities.
xiv. Execution of any other assignments as may be
directed by the CCE.

3.4 Directorate of Intelligence

The functions of this directorate are:
i. The custody and analysis of date
ii. Dissemination of intelligence arising from such date
 iii. Research into various parameters
iv. All intelligence directorate activities except research
are desk jobs requiring no field engagements.

3.5 Directorate of Prosecution and Legal Services

This directorate is responsible for the Agency’s legal
matters, which include:
i. Preferment of legal advice and opinion
ii. Legal drafting
iii. Preparation of document on memorandum of
understanding and treaties
iv. Prosecution of drug offenders
v. Serving as solicitors to the Agency
vi. Handling of assets forfeiture proceedings.
vii. Co-ordinate prosecution matters in the commands to
ensure effectiveness and standardization of legal
services and prosecution efforts.
viii. Execution of any other assignment as may be
directed by the CCE.

3.6 Directorate of Training

The Training Directorate is responsible for all the
Agency’s training matters, seminars and professional
conferences.

3.7 Directorate of Drug Demand Reduction

Drug Demand Reduction Directorate is responsible for
the following:
i. All such activities as shall be necessary for
educating the populace on why drugs should not
be consumed; and popularization of the anti-
drug culture through shows/programmes, drug
awareness posters, etc.
ii. Co-ordination of drug demand reduction activities of
the command to ensure standardization of
professional drug demand reduction efforts.

3.8 Directorate of Inspectorate Services

 This directorate is the ‘policeman’ of the Agency. Its
functions include:
i. Monitoring compliance with Agency policies and
procedures and advising the CCE as appropriate
ii. Keep inventory of all Agency properties
iii. Monitoring the use of such properties, from time to
time and advising the CCE as appropriate
iv. Performance of other duties as may be directed by
the CCE.

3.9 Directorate of Technical Services

The general responsibility of this directorate is the
procurement, operation and maintenance of technical
equipments and the provision of sundry professional
technical services.

4.0 Directorate of Assets Laundering

This directorate superintends over all financial and
assets investigations, pursuant to the execution of the
Agency’s statutory responsibilities as spelt out in Decree
48 of 1989 and the money laundering Decree 3 of 1995.

General Correspondence in NDLEA

What is correspondence?
Correspondence refers to letters that a person writes or
receives which can be personal or official. In this paper, we
are going to discuss official correspondence as it applies to
the Agency.

Types of Correspondence
1. Outgoing Correspondence (External)
It is illegal for officers of the Agency to correspond with
external bodies/agencies without the knowledge and express
approval of the CCE.
a. The Agency administrative and operational
procedures require that correspondences to the
following places must be signed by the CCE or in his
absence, the Secretary/DG:
· The Presidency
 · The National Assembly
· Hon. Ministers
· Chief Justices
· Embassies/High Commissions and foreign
collaborators other than diplomatic missions.
b. Accordingly, correspondences to the UN, EU, OAU,
ECOWAS. Agencies must be cleared with the CCE or
in his absence the Secretary/DG and should be
circulated in the file.
c. Correspondences outside these two categories are
to be copied to the CCE in a general circulation file
to be opened and maintained by the CCE’s
secretary.

2. Correspondences within the Agency (Internal)

All correspondences from the headquarters to the zones
shall go under the title of:
a. Circular: If it is issuing administrative directive or
information for the consumption of the Agency
personal.
b. Tasking: If it is issuing operational directives. The
zonal letters are to be signed either by the CCE or
Secretary/DG. But in certain cases, a director make
endorse after due authorization by CCE.
c. Memo: If it is internal correspondence between the
zone and the headquarters or between zones. All
correspondences within the zone must be addressed
to the zonal commander.

3. Correspondence With CCE

The following channels are the appropriate form of
communication with the CCE:
a. Correspondence on policy/official matters
All such matters originating from a directorate,
zone, or academy are to be under the signature of
the director, Zonal Commander and commandant.
In their absence, the most senior assistant will
endorse.
b. Personal matters
 All personal correspondences should go through the
writer’s immediate supervising officer, through to
the intermediate supervising officer and through the
director and then the Secretary/DG or CCE as the
case may be.
Note that correspondences that do not follow these
channels will not be honoured while the correspondent
will be disciplined.

AGENCY STRUCTURE

a. The general structure

Office of Chairman/Chief Executive
Office of Director General/Secretary
Directorates
State/Special Area Commands
Area Commands

b. Headquarters structure

Office of Chairman/Chief Executive CCE

Office of Director General/Secretary
DG
Directorates
Directors
Departments ADs
Sections
PSOs and SOs

c. State Command Structure

Office of the Commander
Deputy Commanders (O/I and A/L)
Principal Staff officers (Legal, Ops/Int, Admin, DDR, Press)
Area Commanders
Staff Officers
d. Special Area Command Structure
Office of the Special Area Commander
Deputy Special Area Commander
Principal Staff Officers
Staff Officers

COMMAND AND CONTROL RESPONSIBILITIES

Introduction
Essentially, command and control deals with how the
people in an entity are organized and controlled in order to
achieve the objectives of the organization. The prime
consideration is who controls who and how does the
authority to control emanate?

2. The issue of command and control has engaged the

attention of many scholars over the years and who have
come up with a variety of models. One of these is the Max
Weber model, which asserts that control lies in the source of
authority. He identified four sources of authority viz,
tradition, religion, charisma and bureaucracy. In other
words, you may have authority over people because your
traditional institution/practice has vested you with
leadership, e.g. traditional rulers; you may have authority
over people because of your superior knowledge of religious
precepts; you may have authority over people because of
your personal charm and appeal; and you may have
authority over people because of the formal rulers and
regulations of a bureaucratic set-up.

NDLEA
3. NDLEA is a formal bureaucratic set-up. As it were, each
bureaucratic organization is operated on the basis of some
principles, including:
i. Clear division of labour.
ii. Hierarchical arrangement of positions.
iii. Formal rules of engagement.
 iv. Impersonality.
v. Permanency of tenure.
vi. Legality.

4. In furtherance of the bureaucratic dictates of modern

organizations, the social engineering principles of functional
structuralism and structural functionalism have been
brought to play, especially in recent times, when deliberate
re-structuring and functional realignment have been
engineered.

5. In terms of functional structuralism, we mean the

restructuring of the agency in consonance with the functions
it is expected to play. That is, the functions determine the
structure. This explains why we have the directorates and
departments, as they are, currently. A conscious attempt
has been made to create structures that have definite
functions, relevant to the Agency's mandate.

6. A careful appraisal of the structures on ground would

reveal that each structure has a purpose. All the
departments have clearly specified duties. No structure has
been created because of any individual.

7. In a nutshell, what we have today is a delicate but

absolutely purposeful, productive and sensible balance
between structures and functions, wherein functions dictate
structures and structures dictate functions.

Functions Structures

We may express this relationship mathematically as

Structure been a function of Functions and Functions been a
function of Structure.

(S) = f (F) = f(S),

 Therefore F+S = f (F+S)

Hierarchy
8. One of the cardinal characteristics of this bureaucratic
set-up is the pyramidal hierarchy of positions. Much of the
leverage for command and control derives from this formal
graduation of positions. This graduation, on the basis of
offices and ranks, determines who has what powers, while
the legalistic flavour, rules and regulations regulate the
application of such powers.

The structuralism/Functionalism challenge

9. The challenge that stares all of us in our faces is how to
make the structures on ground function and also, how to
make the functions relevant to the tasks at hand. In other
words, the challenge is making the structures and functions
truly beneficial to the Agency.

10. As it were, everybody in the hierarchy, from the broad

base of the pyramid to its very narrow apex, has some role
to play in the overall efficiency and effectiveness of the
organic whole. However, the key function of command and
control lies in the uppermost echelon of the pyramid,
comprising of the leadership, and its immediate subordinate
staff in the persons of Directors, Assistant Directors, Zonal
Commanders, the Commandant and their Assistants.

Fundamental imperatives of the new challenge

11. In other to effectively contribute to the efforts aimed at
tackling the new challenge, the following realizations must
be uppermost in our minds:-
i. The success of one unit is the success of all every
unit.
ii. The failure of one unit is the failure of all.
iii. NDLEA is an organic whole in which every unit is
important, no unit is less or more important than
any other.
 iv. There is always room for improvement; there is no
upper ceiling for good work.
v. You can make a positive difference; if you choose
to.
vi. Organizational and personal success depend
largely on having a clear vision and mission. If
you don’t have a vision and mission vis-à-vis the
unit under your charge, forget success.

Command and Control Responsibilities in NDLEA

12. The beauty about the situation in the Agency is that
your job as Commanders has been succinctly cut out for you.
By virtue of the militaristic nature of the agency and the
powers inherent in legalistic, formal hierarchical structures,
all you require is to be fortunate enough to have the
privilege of appointment into command position bestowed
on you. The powers are unambiguous. What is however
amorphous is how you use this power to achieve the
objectives of the unit you command.

13. The first step in the manipulation of your legal powers

appropriately and productively knows what you should be
doing as a Commander. In this respect, we talk of Command
and Control Responsibilities (CCR).

14. Essentially, CCR involves six key functions, which any

successful manager of men and materials must strive to be
good at. These are:-
a. Planning
This is the act of marshalling out, in advance, what
needs to be done or should be done, by whom,
when, how and with what resources, in order to
accomplish a given objective. This involves:
i. Identification of the problem,
ii. Determination of what to do, that is the
mission objective,
iii. Determining who should do what?
iv. Determining how what needs to be done
should be done?
 v. Allocating resources.
vi. Determining the time frame for what is to be
done.

b. Directing
This is the act of deciding and issuing instructions
as to who should do what, when and how.
Directing involves issuance of tasking orders,
instructions and sundry directives. It is the
provision of guides as to what should or should not
be done.

c. Co-ordinating
Coordination involves close monitoring of the
constituent parts of a unit to ensure that their
activities are synchronized into an efficient organic
whole. That is to say, to ensure all the parts
complement each other, rather than antagonize
and distract one another while carrying out their
duties.

d. Controlling
This is the application of the powers bestowed on
a manager to regulate or limit the activities of the
units and personnel under him/her. Control
involves monitoring to ascertain what is being
done and ascertaining whether it is being done
correctly or not; issuance of regulatory and or
corrective measures to remedy infractions and or
deviation from the norm. Control devices include
appointments, promotions, rewards and penal
actions, amongst other measures.

e. Evaluating
It is also the responsibility of the Commander to
evaluate the performance of his/her unit on a
regular basis. This enables him/her to ascertain
the success or otherwise of the unit. It also offers
him/her the best opportunity for deciding what
 directing and controlling devices he ought to bring
to bear at any material period.

f. Communication
In any legal, formal and hierarchical organization,
each and every member of staff is responsible to
someone else. It is therefore imperative that clear
channels of communication are maintained. That
is, communication between the manager and his
super-ordinate authorities and between him and
his subordinate staff. Of all the CCR, the most
critical is communication. Any manager that
neglects it does so, sadly, at his own peril. It is the
key to how well your superior officers assess your
competence and it is the looking glass through
which your subordinates scrutinize you.

Needless to say, therefore, every effort must be

made to make your communication really
effective, whether you are communicating
formally or informally. Making communication
effective means ensuring that it has all the
requisite qualities, viz: -
i. Clarity- it must be easily understandable,
ii. Reliability- it should not be misleading,
disinformative or misinformative,
iii. Realistic- that is, based on observable facts,
iv. Preciseness- that is, must convey the exact
message it is intended to convey,
v. Adequacy- it must give all the necessary
details that the message is all about.

Command and Control Mechanisms

15. At this juncture, the question we need to address is,
how do we command and control our units? How do we
execute the CCR of planning, directing, coordinating,
controlling, evaluating and communicating?
16. Invariably, no man, even a superman, can carry out
these functions alone. Command and control is a collective
responsibility but which is overseen by the highest man on
the totem pole of each unit. In other words, everybody in
the unit is involved, but the leadership of the unit is the
accounting officer, the overseer on whose table the buck
stops! That is to say, every Commander, every manager,
without exception whatsoever, needs people to be able to
carry out his/her CCR responsibilities.

17. Every manager must, necessarily, manage people and

resources through other people. In this respect, the good
manager is noted for his/her dexterity in manipulating
people to give their best always. The tools available to the
manipulator of men constitute what we may call
mechanisms for command and control responsibilities.
These are:-
a. Delegation of responsibilities,
b. Motivation,
c. Protection,
d. Communication,
e. Participatory involvement.

Delegation
18. Although the system places the Commander and his
deputies at the very apex and has given them considerable
powers, especially the Commander/Director, you would be
deluding yourself if you thought, felt and acted like a
"know-it-all", "do-it-all-by-yourself" lone ranger. No
manager, no matter how knowledgeable, how competent,
how experienced, how powerful, can do it alone. You
unavoidably need your subordinate staff. This is where
delegation comes in.

19. Delegation is the administrative act of assigning duties

and responsibilities to subordinate officers by their superior.
Delegation is a fundamental necessity, in the new scheme of
things, because:-
 i. The Agency Job Specification has clearly spelt out
who should do what.
ii. The overseer of the unit needs the expertise of his
subordinate staff.
iii. If every job is to be done by the boss of the unit,
nothing would get done on time.
iv. If the boss or only one person does everything, the
job would stagnate while the overloaded boss or
lone worker would run the risk of injuries to his
health and his relationships with the staff whose
contributions are not sought after.

20. However, when delegating responsibilities, every care

must be taken to ensure compliance with the following
principles:-
i. Delegation should not be premised on
subjective considerations.
ii. Delegation of responsibilities should be
commensurate with the position and
competence of the delegate.
iii. Delegated orders must be conveyed in clear,
precise and understandable terms.
iv. Delegation should not vitiate existing lines of
functional specialization and division of
labour, unless where absolutely unavoidable.
v. Delegation of responsibilities should be
documented, as soon as practicable in case
of non-compliance, denials and unanticipated
developments that may arise from the
exercise of the delegated duties.
vi. Delegation should, at all times, be
accompanied with appropriate and
commensurate powers and resources
necessary for the execution of the assigned
duties.
vii. Where necessary, the delegation document
must spell out the limits of the exercise of the
authority so delegated and the time frame for
the completion of the task.
 Motivation
21. Every worker, top management staff, middle level staff
and lower level staff, are at work because they wish to
satisfy a set of motives. Motives refer to the conditions
surrounding an individual or in him that propel him/her to
behave in a particular way. That is, those things that excite
a person into action.
22. Motivation is a derivative of these motives. In general
terms, it is the readiness of staff to exhibit goal-directed
behaviour. In other words, the condition of being prepared
to carry out the actions expected of the worker.

23. It is the responsibility of the manager to monitor, gauge

and take appropriate action to keep the state of this
readiness perpetually high. Motivation is such an important
subject that scholars have devoted considerable time and
energy to its study. The most prominent of these is the job
done by Robert Maslow who categorized man's needs or
basis for motivations into the physiological or primary and
unlearned motives and psycho-social or secondary and
learned motives.

24. Physiological needs include biological requirements for

survival such as sex for procreation, food and shelter.
Psycho-social needs include quest for social recognition,
social acceptance and actualization of your potentials.
Maslow has graduated these into the now famous Maslow's
Hierarchy of needs.
 Self-actualization needs

Esteem needs

Social Belongingness needs

Safety needs

Physiological needs

25. The good manager endeavours to understand what

constitutes the basic motives for his/her workers. What do
the workers want? The list can be endless but a few
examples should suffice for this paper.
i. Salaries to buy food, send children to school, etc.
ii. Social relationships with colleagues,
iii. Job Security,
iv. Recognition within the workplace,
v. Opportunities for expressing themselves,
vi. Think of other things and expand the list to thirty.

Protection
26. Depending on the gender, the Manager/Commander is
a paternal or maternal figure to whom every worker looks
up. The expectation is that you, as the patriarch or
matriarch, would fulfill the roles that your subordinate staff
depend on you for. This is more psychological and social in
nature than materialistic, although once in a while workers,
particularly very junior workers, expect some material aid
when in dire straits.

27. Protection is also occupational. This is in the sense that

when your staff have problems, on or off duty, they expect
some degree of sympathy, help and or defense by the unit at
the directive of the Commander or the Commander himself.
For example, if a staff is harassed by non-employees in the
course of his business, he expects immediate show of fellow-
feeling.

28. The element of protection also covers protection of staff

interests, whether they are there or not.

29. Protection is so important that it has been described as

perhaps the most compelling reason why subordinate staff
would follow a leader, even to certain death, where they are
sure he would protect them.

30. Protection is a useful tool of efficient and productive

command and control if it is premised on:-
i. Making it available to all staff, irrespective of your
personal sentiments. If it is offered on a
discriminatory basis, it serves the reverse purpose
of de-motivating your staff.
ii. It should be made available at the right time.
It is of no use if offered as an after-thought.
iii. Other than in exceptional cases, whose
exceptionality must be self-evident, it should be
made available without being asked for.
Protection offered upon request is much less
appreciable than protection offered as a right and
without asking.
iv. Protection should not be predicated on any
conditionality. It should be available to all and
sundry. Indeed, even the staff that is known to
despise, disdain and disrespect the Commander
deserves better protection, as a demonstration of
the Commander's largeness of heart, fairness,
maturity and transparency. As it is said, "help
the blind so that those with sight will see
and learn".
Involvement of the staff in the unit's activities
31. Nothing frustrates staff more than perceived or actual
marginalization, especially when the grounds for their
marginalization is not a direct off shoot of their inefficiency
or indiscretion. When marginalization is occasioned by the
Commander's prejudices or in- attention to details, it could
cause the staff to sabotage his command and control efforts
by sowing the seeds of disgruntlement, in revenge.

32. Of-course, there are times when workers allege

marginalization based on their prejudices and perceptual
psychosis. The Commander's primary responsibility is to
have an ear to the ground with a view to ascertaining who is
marginalized and why, who is complaining over being
marginalized and the justifiability of such complaints.

33. The panacea to these complaints is the involvement of

all staff in the activities of the unit but such involvement
must be graduated and commensurate with rank and
appointments of the staff. If a Deputy Commander is made
to do the job of a line staff, you are not involving him
positively. He will see himself as being ridiculed while others
further down the line will see him as a subservient imbecile.
Neither perception enhances command and control.
Similarly, if, for example, an SNA is given the job of a
superior officer where superior officers exist, the SNA would
feel pampered and disdain the superior officers, while the
superior officers may not only join issues with him but refuse
to give their best to the success of the Commander.

34. In this regard, Commanders of the NDLEA are most

strongly advised to thoroughly acquaint themselves with the
provisions of the NDLEA Regulations as well as the Scheme
of Service which clearly spells out what each cadre and rank
can do.

Communication (as a C&C strategy)

35. The lubricant of Command and Control is
communication. Without proper, clear, regular and reliable
communicating of what the Commander wants to do, there
would be confusion, distortions and dissipation of energy.
36. Communication involves:-
i. Reaching out to the staff as often as possible
through the notice board, memos and circulars.
ii. Meeting with staff on a regular basis to discuss
matters affecting the unit.
iii. Creating official channels for communication to
flow from the top, downwards and vice-versa as
well as horizontally.

Trust
37. Command and Control is simply impossible in an
atmosphere of distrust. The Commander that is desirous of
going down in the annals of the organization as a good and
successful Commander must have faith in his immediate
lieutenants and all other staff below. As in law, where no
one is guilty until proven so, so should it be with trust for
subordinate staff. Trust should be universal for all staff until
they prove themselves, individually, to be unworthy of trust.

38. Without trust, no Commander can delegate

responsibilities. Without delegation, nothing moves forward.
Without trust, the Commander will have neither the will nor
courage to motivate, protect and communicate effectively
with or involve any staff in the activities of the unit. No
manager succeeds without purging himself and his unit of
the element of distrust.

Factors that hinder Command and Control

39. Command and Control can be made quite difficult and
ineffective by a host of factors. We shall consider eleven of
these factors here.
i. Attitudes of subordinate staff
Attitude is the thinking and behaviour of a person,
as conditioned by training or socialization.
Although all NDLEA personnel are conditioned by
training to behave in a certain way, a variety of
factors can interfere and make personnel deviate
from the established and expected norm.
 Personnel attitude may make command and
control difficult if it is inimical to the desired
objectives of the Commander or organization.

Since attitudes are so important, we need to

devote some time to it because you need to know
how attitudes are formed, what it involves and
why they are formed.
a. Attitude formation
Attitudes are formed when one or all of these
three situations exist.
i. Personnel have wants that are in need of
satisfying. If they are assisted to satisfy the
want, positive attitudes are formed towards
the person that assisted them. The reverse
happens if they see you as an obstacle.
ii. Availability or unavailability of information
can influence people to form attitudes that
may be productive or counterproductive.
iii. Group affiliation may make people form
attitudes they would normally not have
formed.
b. Components of attitude
Attitude has three components, that is aspects.
These are:-
i. Cognitive aspect. That is, the way a person
sees or perceives the object the attitude is
been formed about.
ii. Affective aspect. That is, the way the
attitude holder feels about the attitude
object.
iii. Connative aspect. That is, the intention of
the attitude holder based on his attitude to
the attitude object.
The point here is the delicate balance between
perception, feeling and intention.
c. Functions of attitude
People don’t form attitudes for nothing sake.
Attitudes are formed for the functions they
 perform for the attitude holder. These functions
include:-
i. Adjustive function: That is, attitudes help
people to adjust to situations. People form
attitudes because of the rewards that accrue
to them for holding and exhibiting such
attitudes.
ii. Ego-defensive function: This deals with the
phenomenon of attitude formation to
camouflage personal weaknesses. In other
words, attitudes are formed to help the
person deny his shortcomings.
iii. Value-expressive: That is, the formation of
attitudes that externalize and amplify
qualities in a person that are assessed, both
by himself and others, to be good qualities.
iv. Knowledge function: This is the development
of patterns of behavour into which new
information is fitted and exhibited. In other
words, there is a standardized attitude which
is only modified as new information or object
stimuli is received. This is akin to
regimentation and regimental behaviour or
attitude. To some extent, we require some
regimentation in this Agency.

I urge you all to take a closer look at the issue of

attitudes.

d. Rumour
Rumour is also a very grave threat to effective
command and control. Basically, rumour is
unconfirmed fact, or facts, circulated, mostly by
word of mouth, as make-belief facts. It is
important that each commander be weary of
rumour, what makes it thrive and how it is
fabricated.

i. What causes rumour fabrication

 Rumours are fabricated when there is
scarcity of information on matters that either
affect or are of interest to the staff.

ii. How rumours are fabricated

Rumours can be fabricated deliberately to
blackmail the system or Commander or to
extol the ego of the fabricator. This is called
deliberative rumour.

Rumours can also be fabricated

spontaneously by two or more persons when
there is very severe scarcity of information.
This is called extemporaneous rumour. It is
usually unplanned and or unanticipated. It is
often associated with sudden and or drastic
developments which take staff by surprise,
with no prior inkling of such developments.

A good Commander strives hard not to create room for

the fabrication of rumours. As it were, however,
rumours would always make the rounds, but the answer
is not making anybody a escape goat. Rather, the
Commander must try to find out why there is the
rumour. If it is deliberative or extemporaneous, find out
why and attack the root cause.

e. Crisis management inability

In nearly all commands or units, there always
would be crises, of one sort or the other. It may
be of a small or big magnitude. The import of
crisis to command and control is that once the
Commander demonstrates an inability to handle
one little crisis, his staff lose confidence in his
command and control skills. He loses respect,
which is a recurrent decimal in command and
control matters.
 It is important to note that for every crisis, the
Commander has five courses of action. These are:
-

i. Adoption of problem solving action (main

course of action). (PSA)

ii. Adoption of a back-up or alternative action

(AA).

iii. Direct aggression (DA),

iv. Transfer of responsibility/Transferred

aggression (TA).

v. Inaction or withdrawal (WL).

The least action at all times is the adoption
of the problem solving action.

Diagrammatically, this can be illustrated as follows:

TA AA WL
Manager
Problem

PSA

f. The Commander's personal control drama

One of the fundamental facts of life is that each
one of us brings to bear on his or her job a set of
personal views, precepts and practices. These
personalized idiosyncrasies are as varied as there
are people. However, scholars have been able to
reduce them to four broad categories of
personality traits that make each and everyone of
us tick. It is an unconscious phenomenon yet
practicalised daily without our been really aware
of what we are doing. To make a better
Commander and Controller of men and resources,
you must endeavour to really know who you are.
Self-knowledge is the beginning of success. The
Greek philosopher and mathematician, Cicero,
knew this and advised that "Man, know thyself"
hundreds of years ago. He is still one hundred
percent correct.

You and I are like puppets controlled by strings,

manipulated by a puppet master. Our puppet
master is our psychological constitution. This
constitution determines the personality we exhibit
while attempting to manipulate and control others.
These personalities are: -

i. "The Poor Me"

This is known as the victim strategy, wherein
the Commander tries to win deference and
loyalty through the manipulation of
sympathy. The poor me manager attempts,
always, to paint the picture of being
victimized because of one reason or the
other. It could be sex, tribe, religion, region,
education, social status, and, of-course in
NDLEA, Course.

This strategy is however to be avoided

because it is circular and self-validating. It
usually bounces back and you end up in a
bad situation requiring sympathy because
"as you make your bed, so you lie on it".
You summoned sympathy and sympathy you
will get.

ii. The Aloofness

Aloofness arises when we are vague, distant
and detached from our immediate world. The
most common refrain of the aloof are
 statements such as "Oh, well, I am
minding my own business". "I don’t
belong in their class, so nothing
concerns me", etc. The Aloof
manager/commander is secretive and tries to
create an aura of mystery around
him/herself. He/she tries, always, to distance
him/herself from people, especially the
immediate subordinates.

The irony of aloofness is that the Aloof person

wants to place a distance between himself
and his subordinates, yet wants their
attention. The question is, can you eat your
cake and have it? Certainly not!
Aloofness cannot be a successful command
and control strategy.

iii. The interrogator

The interrogator uses criticism to get the
attention and loyalty of his subordinates and
colleagues. The interrogator tries to create the
impression that all others are inadequate or
unable to handle their responsibilities. The
objective is to criticize and throw your colleagues
and subordinates off- balance. The
interrogator wishes to become the dominant
Judge to whom all must defer. He is the hero,
the only one paying attention, and making
sure things are done properly and perfectly,
all others are wrong.

iv. The intimidator

The intimidator tries to win attention and
loyalty by creating an environment in which
colleagues and subordinates feel threatened
and are focused totally on him/her. If you
don’t defer to him the consequence is very
 severe, e.g. a demotion, a sack, detention,
etc.

The point to note is that all of us have these

control dramas. Some people depend
entirely on one personal control drama,
others juggle the dramas from time to time,
in accordance with the situation. Whatever
the case may be, over-dependence on any of
these dramas is counter-productive. Identity
the one you use most often, and try to
complement it with judicious use of the
others as situations warrant.

g. Perception problems
Like our control dramas, all of us come to our
working environment with a set of prejudices and
bias, particularly in the way we see ourselves.
Nearly everybody has some form of perception
problem. That is, perceptual psychosis. These
psychoses influence the way we feel and behave
about things and people around us. The most
common of these are:
i. Perceptual accentuation.
This is the phenomenon of emphasizing or
playing up things or issues that you attach so
much importance to. What you like is
deemed as very good and very important.
What you don’t like is either not good or
unimportant.

ii. Perceptual attenuation

This is the phenomenon of downgrading or
scaling down the value of what you don’t like.
It is the opposite of perceptual accentuation.
Every manager must watch-out for these
perception malaise as they make us
subjective. It has the same effect on
subordinates.
h. The Commander’s knowledgeability
Although the Commander need not necessarily be
an expert before he can assess himself as a good
Commander, proven cognitive ability is often an
advantage because it makes the subordinate staff
much more respectful and loyal. Hardly is a dull
and uninformed manager a pride and object of
deference of his subordinates.

i. Compromise
Every Commander is under scrutiny, on a daily
basis, by his subordinates. Therefore, a
Commander who compromises the known
interests and standards of the unit should expect
little respect from his followers. Some times, the
Commander may involve them in the commission
of the act of compromise. In such circumstances,
they would demonstrate willingness and pleasure
in being accomplices of the Commander, but when
the chips are down, they will leak the secret and at
the same time see you as an unworthy sell-out.

j. Inconsistency
A Commander who never sticks to a decision, that
is, who is inconsistent, should forget success in the
execution of his command and control
responsibilities. A good manager should, to a
certain extent, be reasonably predictable. That is,
he should be consistent in his actions.

k. Prejudice and bias

Two of the worst command and control "sins" are
prejudice and bias. Prejudice is the tendency to
pre-judge people even before giving them
opportunity to prove themselves. In the Nigerian
setting two of the major bases for prejudice are
religion and ethnicity. A Commander who
predicates his perception of people on subjective
 and sentimental considerations is most likely to
succeed at greater costs than the Commander
who operates as a father or mother who loves
his/her wards equally.

On the other hand, bias is the tendency of

favouring select staff for a variety of reasons. It is
closely related to prejudice. A good Commander
should show bias only on one condition. That is,
for staff who prove themselves to be truly
hardworking, honest and reliable, purely on
professional grounds, not minding where they
come from or what they believe in.

l. Rivalry amongst staff and or units

Rivalry is the tendency of staff and units to
compete with each other for the Commander's
attention and resource allocation. It is a double-
edged word that must be watched and
manipulated carefully. If it is allowed to
degenerate into an unhealthy struggle, it would
jeopardize command and control.

m. Immaturity/irresponsibility
A Commander's way of life and sense of
responsibility go a long way to determine how
his/her staff perceive him/her. Usually this arises
from failure to grow with appointment to
command positions. Appointment to such
positions should change one's perspectives on life,
your comportment and bearing. Immature and
irresponsible conduct reduce the acceptability of
your orders and the effectiveness of your
command. The commonest acts of immaturity
and irresponsibility include:-
i. Rash decisions,
ii. Use of abusive language,
especially on junior staff.
iii. Sleeping with female staff,
 especially in a serial manner like a sampler of
products.
iv. Bringing visitors to the office without
discretion.
vi. Irresponsible dressing.
vii. Disregard of Agency Regulations while
expecting others to observe them.
viii. Lateness to work, while expecting your staff
to be punctual.
ix. Sloppy work habit.

n. Quest for vengeance

Some managers and commanders have been
known to have cultivated the habit of seeking to
revenge their earlier ill-treatment by superior
officers with similar treatment of their subordinate
staff because it is "my time". A Commander
must have a large and forgiving heart. It
does not matter whether your subordinate staff is
the ward of the man that victimized you earlier or
he/she was the cause of your victimization.
Appointment into a command position
automatically prescribes that the Commander
forgive the sins of the past and concentrate on
the now and the future.

You must remember that vengeance is a vicious

boomerang. It comes back to you because the
object of Commander vengeance will revenge, one
way or other. So the circle is perpetuated and
becomes a threat to command and control.

o. Commander ingratitude
One of the commonest pitfalls of command
appointment is the ingratitude of the appointees
and their disregard for the natural law of nemesis.

Ingratitude arises when one fails to recognize that

appointment is a privilege not a right and that this
 privilege can be withdrawn, if the appointee fails
to live up to expectations. This ingratitude, quite
often, propels the commander to become rude,
proud and insensitive to the rights and privileges
of his colleagues, subordinates and even superior
officers.

Disregard for natural law refers to the failure to

recognize the fact that there is a reaction for every
action. Good Commandership generates good
followership and bad commandership breeds bad
followership. Furthermore, nobody gets away with
his/her treatment of colleagues and subordinates.
If you are good to your staff, goodness will follow,
during and after your command. If you are nasty,
nemesis will also stay with you. Remember, your
conduct is like your shadow. Can anyone run
away from his shadow?
Qualities that Good Managers/ Commanders must
posses or strive to develop
40. To be a good Commander and controller of men and
materials, one must posses certain qualities.
These qualities include:-
i. Integrity
This is honesty, transparency and moral
uprightness. Every Commander is under scrutiny
by his subordinates. Do not be deceived by your
privileges and official power into believing that
whatever you are doing is a secret.
Your respect and the way and manner your staff
conduct themselves depend on your integrity.
ii. Enthusiasm
The Commander is the leading workman of his unit
and must show clear evidence of interest in the
unit's job. If you demonstrate lack of enthusiasm
in the job, the same feeling will filter downwards
and affect the productivity of the unit.
iii. Vigilance
 The Commander must be at alert always. This is
not in the sense of sleeping in the office but been
watchful and paying attention to potential
problems and difficulties.
iv. Open-mindedness
This is the quality of been unprejudiced and willing
to consider new ideas. It is the readiness to adopt
new and productive ideas and being adaptable to
new ways. It is the opposite of rigidity. No good
manager sticks to the usual "this is the way we
have been doing it" tactics.
v. Objectivity
This is the quality of been impartial and unbiased
by one's personal feelings when considering
issues. An objective Commander works with facts,
not sentiments.
vi. Fairness
This is the quality of treating all your staff equally
and according to the regulations of the Agency. In
other words, whatever you do for one staff should
be extended, on equal basis, to others.
vii. Discipline
Discipline means self-control and orderly conduct
and staying focused on what you want to do.
viii. Approachability
A good Commander must be approachable. That
is, your subordinates must be able to talk to you,
communicate with you without fear of reprisals.
You must be able to listen to your staff. It also
involves friendliness.
ix. Firmness
Firmness means taking decisions and sticking to
such decisions. It also means standing by your
new points, but care must be taken to ensure that
firmness does not jeopardize the qualities of
fairness and open-mindedness. Firmness should
only operate when it promotes the interests of the
Agency.
x. Consistency
 This is the quality of doing things in a predictable,
stable or similar pattern. Variation of pattern, e.g.
promises or decisions, causes confusion,
uncertainty, discontinuity and failure.
xi. Selflessness
A Commander is the number servant of his/her
unit, regardless of the privileges of office. He/she
must therefore place the interests of the Agency,
his colleagues and subordinates before his/her
own. When subordinates see that their leader
loves them, treats them as his human beings, they
will give their best.
Xii Calmness
A Commander should never be excitable, no
matter the situation. He must remain calm, not
only because it clears your mind and makes for
succinct assessment of situations, it also cools
down the excitement of the subordinate staff.
xiii. Good judgment
One of the greatest assets of the Commander is
good judgment. People's lives, national interests
and several critical matters depend on the
judgment of the Commander. When deciding
matters, the elements of objectivity, firmness,
fairness, integrity, open-mindedness, consistency,
selflessness, calmness all must be considered in
order to arrive at a balanced judgment.
xiv. Courage
This is the ability to control one's fears about the
repercussions of one's decisions and thereby going
ahead to take and implement such decisions. A
good Commander tries his best, always, but even
when these decisions fail, he is not deterred. It is
always better to take a bad decision than none at
all.
xv. Resourcefulness
This is the Commander's initiative and ability to
improvise. It is not always that all you need for
effective command and control are available. In
 such situations, the hallmark of command and
control excellence is your resourcefulness. That is,
making do with what is available, finding
alternative answers using locally available
resources and inputs; using your own initiative to
find answers to problems or discovering new
usages/ opportunities that advance the cause of
your unit.
Respect for subordinates
A good Commander respects his subordinates
because without them who is he commanding?
Respect for subordinates involves:
i. Protection, where appropriate,
ii. Fair hearing and judgment,
iii. Delegation of responsibilities,
iv. General humane treatment,
v. Communication.
xvi. Good relationship with the host community
No organization exists in a vacuum. It is therefore
imperative that good relationships are maintained
between your unit and the host community.
Without the community and its myriad of
activities, your unit has no business existing.
Good community relationship is a multiple door
opener, operationally and administratively. These
relationships include those with fellow law
enforcement agencies, the civil populace, the
public and private sectors, etc.

Conclusion
41. Command and Control is a very easy job, yet very
difficult. It is easy, especially in formal organizations like
NDLEA because the chain of command and the ground rules,
are clearly well set-out. The difficulty arises from the fact
that it deals with human beings, mostly. Human beings are
very difficult to deal with.

42. The difficulty of handing human beings

notwithstanding, people have been able to efficiently
perform command and control functions by adopting the
aforementioned strategies and qualities which have been
proven to be very effective tools. Nothing illustrates the
reality of command and control better than the proverbial
adage that says "what you sow is what you reap". A
Commander who endeavours to apply these strategies and
qualities gets effective and efficient command and control.
All of you too, can become very good commanders of men
and materials, if you resolve to be. There is no better time
and organizational atmosphere than now, especially since
you all are already in command positions. You have a
golden opportunity to prove yourselves. American
motivational speaker and writer, Norman Vincent Peale once
advised an audience of neophyte managers thus: "if you
want to climb high, shoot for the stars, even if you
don’t get there, you might land on the moon. That is
good enough". Ladies and Gentlemen, shoot for the stars,
for that is your limit.