Jeff Amechi Agbodo, Onitsha
Youths in Anambra State have been warned to shun drug abuse, cultism and other social vices capable of ruining their lives.
The Senior Special Assistant to Governor Willie Obiano on Security Matters Mr. Osita Nwoye who gave the advise in the statement decried the alarming rate of youths of abuse of drug and cultism which he said, if left unchecked, could jeopardise and mar the future of the state.
Nwoye urged the parents and guardians to desist from living a care-free life rather; they should strive to be good role models to their children and should monitor the activities of their children and the kind of company they keep.
He posited that drug abuse has resulted to mental disorderliness, robbery, rape as well as other social vices amongst the youths.
“This has resulted to vices such as school dropouts, cultism, prostitution, armed robbery, kidnapping, mental derailment, political thuggery, etc. The impact of drug abuse among Nigerian youths is producing a pool of unemployable and unemployed youths who have become social miscreants constituting problems to the society and to the government.
He noted that Government alone cannot do everything and thus needs the collaborative efforts of various stakeholders in disentangling the youths from the scourge of drug abuse and cultism.
Nwoye further stated that he was working assiduously in collaboration with other stakeholders to organise series of seminars and orientation programmes to educate the public on the dangers and damage of drug addiction and cultism and its effects on young people.
He noted that time has come for all hands to be on deck to fight the social menace of illicit drug use and cultism among the youths.
He, however, noted that the menace of drug abuse was consciously addressed by his office in collaboration with various agencies and institutions like the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), and the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) and other government law enforcement agencies.