The Senior Legislative Aide to the Senate President on Stakeholders’ Engagement and Mobilization, Hon. Femi Odere has urged Nigerians from all walks of life to see drug abuse by youths as what he described “an existential problem.”
Odere said this at a “Drug Outreach” program organized by the White Rock Addiction Foundation, a US-based Foundation with an organizational presence in Nigeria. The Outreach was held at the Mpape Primary School in Area 1 of the FCT on July 29th.
The SLA to the Senate President said drugs and the abuse of other narcotics is becoming “an epidemic, if it has not already been, among our youths that everybody should see it as his business to eliminate.”
“It is so bad to the extent that reports has it that when addicts cannot purchase drugs, they resort to inhaling the toxic fumes from soak aways, syrups and other dangerous chemicals in order to get high,” he said.
He said it was on the strength of this realization that this scourge was becoming a national crisis that the Senate moved in to frontally address this problem, under the leadership of the Senate President His Excellency Godswill Akpabio, when the Red Chamber approved the death sentence as penalty for drug traffickers in the country sometimes this year.
Odere said the review of the penalty, which is presently life imprisonment for drug traffickers provisions of the amendment bill was to strengthen the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) Act.
Among the special dignitaries at the event were HRM Alhaji Musa Pada, Seriki Mpape; OBA Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, The Ooni of Ife who was represented by HRH Adekale Musbaudeen. Others were the Senior Legislative Aide to the Senate President Hon. Femi Odere who addressed the gathering and Amb. Musa Mohammed Tsoken, among others.
Conveners of the outreach campaign against drug abuse under the banner of White Rock Addiction Foundation are Dr. Olatunji Nasiru, Dr. (Rev.) Kayode Babajide David, and Hon. David Folaranmi, Chairman, Deputy Chairman and General Secretary respectively.
