•Indicts politicians for using addicts as thugs
Emir of
Kano, Alhaji Muhammadu Sanusi II, yesterday advocated compulsory drug test for
Nigeria’s leaders, even as he indicted politicians for using addicts as thugs.
At the
opening of a two-day Senate discussion on Drug Abuse Epidemic in Nigeria held
in Kano yesterday, Sanusi said: “If we, the leaders, political office holders,
ministers, emirs, senators and even Imams claim we are not part of the cause of
this menace, we are deceiving ourselves because we have seen how governors
parade these youths who are under the influence of drugs and move around in
their convoys for security cover.”
Sanusi,
who represented the Sultan of Sokoto, Dr. Sa’ad Abubakar, said: “You can count
many of these thugs who are on the payroll of politicians, working for them and
having access to security agencies.
In fact,
it is becoming profitable for these youths to work for these politicians who
give them all they want rather than look for gainful employment.
We should
all be part of the solution. Any person willing to take up public office should
therefore undergo a drug test. And if positive, should be denied the
opportunity.”
The emir
called for better funding for the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency. He also
blamed the abuse of psychotropic drugs in the North on poverty, illiteracy and
broken homes. “You find a man who cannot care sufficiently for a wife getting
married to two or three women, producing 20 or 30 children, and sending them
out to care for themselves.
This must
stop. Until the government looks into family management and punishes anybody
who treats family like slaves, the war against drug abuse might not be won,”
Sanusi said.
Senate
President Bukola Saraki pledged the commitment of the legislature to the
enforcement of drug laws.
Kano
State Deputy Governor, Prof. Hafiz Abubakar, disclosed that the fight against
drug abuse was beyond the capacity of the state and called for Federal
Government support.
According
to him, “Kano has the largest share of all the challenges, considering our
population and commercial base, yet we have just one rehabilitation center.
The
government set up a task force. Arrests were made. Drugs worth N4.6 billion
have already been destroyed. But this has little or no effect on what is on
ground.”
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