The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) on Saturday tasked stakeholders on campaign against drug abuse in the country.
The State Commander of NDLEA in Rivers State, Dr Ahmed Mamuda, made the call during a ceremony marking the 2022 International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking in Port Harcourt.
Mamuda stated that the 2022 celebration with the theme “Adressing Drug Challenges in Health and Humanitarian Crisis” focused on how to help the vulnerable and the drug dependent persons come out of the danger.
He said that the level of drug abuse and illicit trafficking in Nigeria had become worrisome and needed conceited efforts by all groups society to sensitise the public on the danger.
The event was preceded by a weeklong activities organised by the agency in collaboration with the Right Mind Leader Network.
Others partners in the programme were Ebus Pharmacy, Port Harcourt, the Students Union Government of the Rivers State University and the Nigeria Association of Foreign Trained Pharmacists (NAFTRAPH).
The Commander of Nacotics (CN) said: “We have been to mosque to preach about drug abuse. We are also going to churches to do the same.
He stated that the agency was prosecuting 145 drug suspects in the state and had also seized 277.239kgs of different drugs, including cocaine, heroin, fat ermines and cannabis sativa.
Mamuda urged youths in the state to shun illicit drugs because of their danger to health, saying that as future leaders they should not allow drugs to destroy their brain or health.
The guest lecturer and Consultant Neuropsychiatrist at the University of Port Harcourt, Dr Nkporbu Kennedy, noted that the world had been passing through turbulent times in health and humanitarian crisis such as COVID-19 and food crisis.
He said that in a turbulent time people found solace in drugs to momentarily forget their problems and added that the indulgence often led to drugs abuse.
“Someone of them become dependent on those drugs not knowing the dangers involved,” he said.
He called on government to strengthen the NDLEA and other drug law enforcement agencies to enable them to curb the use of illicit drugs in society.
“Government, Civil Society Organisation, religious bodies should take the fight against drug abuse and illicit trafficking as one of their priorities,” he said.
