Dr Jibril Abdulmalik, a Consultant Psychiatrist at the University College Hospital, Ibadan, on Sunday called on Nigerian youths to shun drug abuse to avoid brain damage.
Abdulmalik gave the advice at the first graduating ceremony of MIMBAR College, a co-educational school in the Oyo State capital.
He noted that drug abuse among Nigerian youths had been on the increase and urgent attention was needed to curb the menace.
He said drug addicts needed daily ingestion of hard substances and that the need to satisfy the urge usually led to psychiatric problems difficult to treat.
“Most of those that are into drugs don’t pay attention to their studies and some end up dropping out of school.
“The best treatment for drug abuse is to shun the practice,’’ Abdulmalik said.
He admonished graduating students to resist peer pressure and make friends only with those with positive outlook to life.
Chairman at the ceremony, Bashorun Adekunle Oladeji, urged the graduates to work hard and build on whatever they had learnt in the school.
Oladeji said that the society regarded youths as future leaders and that they must build on their present to have brighter future.
“As you are graduating from MIMBAR College today, it is just a step and strong foundation in the phases of your lives. It is time to study more; no time for unnecessary play,’’ he said.
Oladeji also urged the graduates to make determination, dedication and desire their focal points to attain success.
In his remarks, Director of MIMBAR College, Mr Akinwale Akinlabi, said the school had modelled the graduates on the school’s core values of knowledge, faith and leadership.
Akinlabi said he was confident that the students had imbibed those cultures and were set to be problem solvers.
He urged them to be good ambassadors of the school wherever they found themselves.
One of the graduates, Miss Hamat Salam, appreciated the teachers and the director for the knowledge impacted on them.
Highlight of the occasion was presentation of awards and Quranic recitation competition. (NAN)