The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has said the Nigerian woman, Kudirat Afolabi, who was executed for drug-related offences deserved it.

The ambassador of Saudi Arabia to Nigeria, Adnan Bostaji, said this when he visited the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Thursday to explain the position of Saudi Arabia on the execution.

He said the punishment was

“deservedly meted out on the Nigerian woman because she was found guilty of violating the Sharia law.”

He noted that drug trafficking was not permitted in the Saudi Kingdom, adding that though Nigeria and his country enjoyed cordial diplomatic relations the law against drug trafficking applied to everyone in the Kingdom irrespective of their nationality.

“Saudi Arabia is following Sharia law and anyone who violates the law by bringing drugs into Saudi Arabia will be punished by the law.

“This is because we want to save our society from drugs. So, if we don’t impose our Sharia law on these guilty people we may not save our society. The law is for all people in Saudi Arabia and not only for Saudi citizens,” he explained.

He added that no one could feign ignorance of the law as all visitors to the Kingdom were made to sign an undertaking not to bring drugs to the country before obtaining a Saudi visa.

He expressed dismay over the failure of visitors to obey the law, saying that despite the strict penalties, people brought hard drugs to his country.

The Nigerian Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Isah Dodo, lamented the “notoriety of Nigerians and nationals of other countries in bringing drugs to Saudi,” stressing that the menace had been going on for long.

He said the law against drugs was clear, and that anyone who violated it would be executed as nobody could stop the Saudi Government.

“So all we can tell our people is to stop taking drugs to Saudi Arabia or to other countries where the punishment is execution. 

Nigerians have seen many people executed in Saudi Arabia and this is sufficient to serve as a deterrent to them but they have remained adamant and continued to commit this crime,” he said.