Central Narcotics Bureau

The Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB, ), established in 1971, is the primary drug enforcement agency in Singapore responsible for coordinating all matters pertaining to drug eradication.

Early years
Drug addiction in Singapore began with the consumption of opium back in the 19th and early 20th century. By 1848, the drug was abused by approximately 15000 Chinese addicts. This was a worrying statistic as it represented one out of every three adult Chinese settlers on the island. According to Richard Little, a British government surgeon of the Straits Settlement, opium addiction was exacting a heavy price on both the financial and physical resources of an abuser. Little even went as far as to recommend that there be a form of official control over the spread of opium smoking. Back then, opium was such a valuable commodity that it was once said that Singapore's economy would collapse if the drug were to be outlawed. However, Little's advice went unheeded and failed to affect the government's policy. By 1900, Singapore had seen an alarming rise in the number of licensed opium dens from 45 in 1848 to 550.

In 1906, Singapore saw its first anti-drug movement as several prominent community leaders felt that something had to be done regarding the sorry state of opium addicts. For the first time, they began to openly criticize the opium trade and rallied Chinese newspapers to their cause, so as to highlight the evil of opium consumption. Despite not being able to influence the British's administration policy and implement an all-out ban on opium, the movement achieved considerable success in altering people's perception of opium. It made people realize the dangers of smoking opium which could lead to prolonged suffering.

40 years later, the campaigning efforts of the Chinese community finally paid off as opium was outlawed. On 1 February 1946, the Opium and Chandu Proclamation was implemented and it criminalized the smoking of opium and possession of opium-smoking utensils. The subsequent years saw Dangerous Drugs Ordinance coming into force. The Ordinance, implemented in 1951, provided for stiffer penalties for pushers and ensured that addicts undergo treatment at the Opium Treatment Centre on St John's Island. Enforcement actions were also stepped up concurrently in order to weed out all opium activities. By the 1970s, there was a drastic fall in the number of addicts smoking opium.

1970s
On 19 October 1971, Singapore's government announced that a new and dedicated agency, the Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB), would be set up within the Ministry of Home Affairs to fight the drug menace. Minister for Home Affairs (1970 – 1972) Wong Lin Ken said, "Such activities will be coordinated in the Central Narcotics Bureau. CNB also plans to build a capacity to educate the public in the dangers of drug abuse". In 1973, Singapore's government introduced a new law to deal with drug traffickers, pushers and addicts – the Misuse of Drugs Act (MDA). 15. The enactment of the MDA was intended to serve two-purposes, firstly, to consolidate the provisions of the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance 1951 (DDO) and Drugs (Prevention of Misuse) Act 1969 (DPMA) ; secondly, to more effectively deal with the worsening drug situation. New legislation was perceived to be necessary as Chua Sian Chin, then Minister for Health and Home Affairs, notes in Parliament in 1973. "The Dangerous Drugs Act (i.e DDO) was enacted about 21 years ago and the controls provided therein are grossly inadequate for the 70's, with the introduction of a host of new drugs of medical value if properly used." The need was exacerbated by Singapore's geographical location and development into a trading hub. The proximity to the Golden Triangle is another oft-cited justification for tough anti-drug laws.

Present Day
In November 1993, the "Committee to Improve the Drug Situation in Singapore" was set up to look into the drug situation and it recommended a total and integrated approach to deal with the drug problem. The four main strategies are Preventive Drug Education, Rigorous Enforcement, Treatment and Rehabilitation for addicts, and finally, Aftercare and Continued Rehabilitation for ex-addicts to reintegrate them into society. In addition to conducting rigorous enforcement, CNB also took on the responsibility of preventive drug education.

Vision
CNB's vision is to be a leading and dynamic law enforcement agency in the fight against drugs and to make Singapore drug free.

Mission
The mission of the CNB is threefold:


 * To conduct vigorous enforcement against drug offenders.
 * To actively co-operate with local and foreign agencies on drug related matters.
 * To promote a drug-free lifestyle through preventive education and active engagement of the community.

Core values
CNB's core values are professionalism, integrity, dedication and courage.

Anti-drug strategy

 * Enforcement
 * Preventive drug education
 * Treatment and rehabilitation
 * Aftercare and continued rehabilitation

Out of the four key pillars, CNB has contributed significant amount of resources on the first two strategies. The bureau conducts vigorous enforcement and is also the lead agency for preventive drug education.

Enforcement
CNB conducts regular islandwide operations involving the concurrent mobilisation of resources and manpower across Singapore to conduct checks against drug abusers and ex-drug abusers who may have relapsed. Other than islandwide operations, CNB conducts operations targeted at specific areas where intelligence sources indicate that drug activity is taking place.

In a 2010 press release, CNB indicated that it has doubled the number of joint operations conducted at the checkpoints. These operations were carried out together with other Home Team partners such as the Singapore Police Force and the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA). There is also greater focus on intensifying inland operations by extending their duration in order to send a deterrent message to drug offenders.

In May 2011, CNB conducted an islandwide anti-drug operation which lasted 48 hours – twice as long as is normally carried out. The most recent drugs bust arrested 3 drug traffickers with 40g of cannabis seized in October 2014.

Preventive drug education
CNB's Preventive Education Unit (PEU) was formed in 1992 to focus solely on the formation and implementation of preventive drug education (PDE) programmes in Singapore. Singapore's PDE approach is based on the theory of social inoculation which proposes that exposure to persuasive messages will reduce susceptibility to subsequent negative persuasions. Given the strong social influence in drug consumption, CNB's PDE efforts are centered on helping youths to resist temptations to try drugs. The bureau promotes a drug-free lifestyle by engaging schools and the community as strategic partners in the fight against drugs. In addition, CNB is also proactive in the planning and implementation of innovative and effective programmes to spread the anti-drug message.

The highlight of CNB's PDE efforts is its the annual nationwide anti-drug dance competition, DanceWorks!. The competition aims to promote the anti-drug message and encourage youths to lead a healthy and drug-free lifestyle. In recent years, the event has seen greater participation from schools with more dancers coming forward to showcase their talent. In 2011, the performances were recorded and aired on the TV channel Okto for publicity and to attract more youths to participate in the event. Besides the dance segments, students who were non-dancers could also participate in pre-event competitions such as the "Anti-Drug Stick on Tattoo Design" (2009) and "Best T-shirt Contest" (2011).

Budget
The estimated expenditure for the 2011 financial year was $88,599,700. This amount represented a 2.4% decrease compared to the expenditure in the 2010 financial year. In the 2011 financial year estimate for budget allocation, the Bureau's force stood at 104 senior narcotics officers (SNOs) and 568 narcotics officers (NOs). In addition, there were civilians in the bureau under the Home Affairs Senior Executive (HASEs) and Management Support Officers (MSOs) schemes. The total number of officers working in the bureau was 768.

Careers
The Bureau, together with other Home Team Agencies, often holds career fairs in order to reach out to prospective officers who intend to join either the uniformed or civilian career track. In 2010, the Ministry of Home Affairs issued a press release indicating its intention to recruit 2000 officers spread across different agencies and departments. In conjunction with this target, a career fair was subsequently held at the Marina Square Central Atrium. There were displays and demonstrations of various operational capabilities and equipment from Prisons, SCDF, CNB, ICA and SPF.

Special Task Force
CNB maintains a small specialized unit namely the Special Task Force (STF) which carry out high risk operations (such as vehicle pursuits and conducting house raids), forced entry and performing round-the-clock surveillance of syndicate activities since 1997.

Little of the STF is known, as information on the task force, such as the identities of its members, the number of officers in the unit or where it is based, is classified. However, officers must have at least two years of experience in CNB to sign up. To be selected, they have to undergo a battery of physical, shooting and psychometric tests, and an interview.

After being selected, officers have to receive nine months of training to ensure they are well equipped with skills such as in vehicle interception, close-quarter restraint techniques and conducting a forced entry into premises.

Controversies
CNB announced that an error was found in the statistical computation of drug abuser arrest statistics for the period 2008 to 2010 after migrating to a new IT system. The amended and updated data reflects higher numbers of drug abusers for that period. CNB stressed that the mistake in the computation did not affect its enforcement efforts.

In 2012, the then chief of the CNB was suspended accruing from internal investigations involving corrupt practice.

Equipment
CNB officers are trained in the use of, and issued, the 5-shot Taurus Model 85 revolver as their standard issue sidearm, same as the Singapore Police Force. Officers are also trained and issued with expandable batons for less than lethal self-defense options, bulletproof vests and handcuffs for restrains.

For Special Task Force, they have the access to battering rams and electric cutters for forced entry and the Heckler & Koch USP semi-auto pistol as their firearm.