{
  "id": 1670692,
  "title": "Stop destroying cannabis farms, wasting economic opportunities, Sowore tells NDLEA",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/18/stop-destroying-cannabis-farms-wasting-economic-opportunities-sowore-1670692",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-08-18T08:30:50.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Punch Nigeria",
    "slug": "punch-nigeria",
    "url": "https://punchng.com/stop-destroying-cannabis-farms-wasting-economic-opportunities-sowore-tells-ndlea/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Human rights advocate and presidential candidate for the All Progressive Change (APC) party, Omoyele Sowore, has criticized Nigeria's National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) for destroying cannabis farms in Edo State. In a post on social media platform X, Sowore denounced the agency's actions, stating that it is destroying economically viable crops while Nigeria suffers from widespread poverty. Sowore urged the government to stop destroying cannabis farms and instead legalize and regulate the plant, to capitalize on its medicinal and industrial uses. He argued that Nigeria could benefit greatly from a regulated cannabis industry, through job creation, revenue generation, and research. The Edo State Command of the NDLEA recently destroyed two cannabis plantations, arresting 10 suspected drug traffickers in the process.",
  "summary": "Omoyele Sowore criticizes NDLEA for destroying cannabis farms, advocating for cannabis legalization in Nigeria to harness economic opportunities and genera Read More: https://punchng.com/stop-destroying-cannabis-farms-wasting-economic-opportunities-sowore-tells-ndlea/",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Punch",
        "title": "Stop destroying cannabis farms, wasting economic opportunities, Sowore tells NDLEA",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/18/stop-destroying-cannabis-farms-wasting-economic-opportunities-sowore",
        "published": "2026-08-18T08:28:50.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}