Drug abuse: Kano lives up to high rating
The high rating which supersedes that of all other states of the federation is evident by the rate at which hard drugs are being traded and intercepted by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA). Haruna Kwetishe, the current State Commandant of the agency, who assumed work a month ago, couldn’t help but express shock […]
The high rating which supersedes that of all other states of the federation is evident by the rate at which hard drugs are being traded and intercepted by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA). Haruna Kwetishe, the current State Commandant of the agency, who assumed work a month ago, couldn’t help but express shock over the number of people arrested by officials within the period he assumed work.
Kwetishe was quoted as saying, “45 people have been arrested in connection with hard drugs while over 300kg of drugs were seized.”
In addition, last Friday, the agency intercepted a luxury bus loaded with Indian hemp. The bus was said to have travelled into the state from the eastern part of the country. Even though the owner of the hemp weighing about 30kg is yet to be identified, Kwetishe said the bus passengers are currently undergoing interrogation as the agency will ensure the culprit face the wrath of the law.
Speaking further on the survey result, Kwetishe said it is not surprising that the state has the highest rate of drug abuse considering its population as well as being a leading center for commercial activities in the country. He further said even though drugs like Indian hemp are not cultivated in the state, Kano happens to be the largest market for such drugs while it is supplied from the southern part of the country. He also expressed worry over the indiscriminate sale of medicinal substances like cough syrups containing codeine and the likes being sold at patent medicine stores and abused particularly by youths in the state.
A drug addict, Haruna Mohammed, popularly called Zaki said he has been into drugs since he was 11. “I am 25-years-old and I don’t feel OK if I don’t take any of the drugs I am used to. I am not surprised that Kano tops drug abuse index and this is because Kano is first in everything, good or bad”.
When Weekly Trust contacted the Director General, Kano State societal reorientation directorate, a daiadaita Sahu, Dr Bala Mohammed on the issue, he said “most likely the statistics used may be dated several years. It is true that Kano used to be at the top of the drug abuse index in the country but not now because during the past four years, there has been a lot of effort by the government through this directorate to ensure that the fight against drug abuse succeed and we have recorded lots of success.”
Another drug addict who was still in the custody of the NDLEA in Kano told Weekly Trust that he has been taking marijuana from the age of eighteen. He was introduced to it by a friend while living with an uncle at BUK quarters. Now 25, Tony Emos, a native of Benue State, says he relishes taking Indian hemp because it makes him feel happy. “Whenever I have something worrying my mind, I will smoke it and immediately I will be fine, happy and think deeply,” he said, adding that he usually has a strong desire for the drug at periods when his carpentry workshop is out of work.
He was however quick to mention that his incarceration due to marijuana, has exposed him to its bad side. “I am not happy now, since I’m behind bars because I was caught smoking it,” he stated remorsefully.
The State Commander of the NDLEA listed high population and unemployment as the major contributing factors to the menace. He stated that Indian hemp suppliers from the southern part of the country have “ready markets” to trade their illicit cargo especially among the jobless youths in the state. “Since we have youths too who had nothing doing, they become easy consumers of the drugs,” he said. Other drugs consumed by youths in the state abuse are “psychotropic substances’ like refenol and others, the anti-drug boss stated.
Another trend, the NDLEA boss said, presently in vogue among addicts in the state is taking drugs that are not banned or penalized by the country’s statute books. “They have even graduated to some other areas that the law has really put stringent conditions upon. There is no law banning it: like lizard dung, Gadagi, Zakami, solution and others,” Barrister Kwetishe revealed. He however warned that these new drugs are more hazardous than Indian hemp.
Dr. Baffa Aliyu Umar of Department of the Sociology, Bayero University Kano says the high incidence of drug abuse among youths is caused by frustration; a break down of family values and unemployment. He attributed the trend to “social problems prevalent in the society. On the peril it constitutes to the society, the university lecturer pointed out that the effect is multidimensional. “It first affects the psychological balance of the person concerned, then his family and members of the community. At the psychological and personal level it affects the person more, because it can induce other psychological conditions in his personality and in his life and can affect his sense of coordination,” he explained.
Kwetishe further cautioned parents to monitor strange behaviors like drop in their school performances, excessive use of perfumes, frequent intake of chewing gum and sweets with strong aroma among other things exhibited by their wards with a view to check drug abuse among them. The commander however, said it is unfortunate that the laws against drug abuse are not exhaustive of all the substances that cause drunkenness and commonly used by youths. He therefore called on the members of the House of Assembly to pass into law the bill on drug abuse which is currently before the house in order to enhance the operations of the agency.