An NGO, Vanguard Against Drug Abuse (VGADA), says it will partner with the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) Drug Recovery Force in the fight against consumption of illicit drugs.
The President of VGADA, Dr Hope Abraham, spoke in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Friday in Abuja.
According to him, trafficking, smuggling, distributing or consuming illicit drugs constitute crime.
“Following the alarming trend of abuse of drugs, the teams have decided to organise a rally against drug abuse and election violence starting from Dec.1.
“The rally will start from Eagle Square to Maitama Roundabout.
“It will also feature sensitisation of students, youths and the people at large on the dangers of abuse of illicit drugs, psychotropic substances and why drugs should not be an option,’’ Abraham said.
He stated that the partnership had become necessary in view of the recent interception of illicit Tramadol tablets by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA).
He said, “You will recall that just last week, the NDLEA uncovered 23 containers with 581 million Tramadol tablets within two days of search.
“Let’s estimate the Nigeria Population of nearly 200 million people, that means each would have had at least three tablets of Tramadol to abuse daily.
“The need for people to be more aware of the dangers of illicit drugs consumption has called for concern.
“That is why the group decided to partner with NYSC to fight against this menace of abuse; to sensitise students and create more awareness as to why they should stop drug abuse.”
Abraham said the group would not relent in its efforts at ridding the country of hard drugs, adding that several campaigns had been held in this regard.
He said that drug abuse led to all forms of social vices and must be tackled collectively.
