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Lumbidzani Dima, Chronicle Reporter
ONE of Makokoba suburb’s most famous youths is detained at Ingutsheni Central Hospital after allegedly abusing drugs.

The suburb which has been a drug abuse hotspot for years, is providing a sizeable number of youths taken to Ingutsheni Central Hospital after abusing drugs.

Speaking during an anti-drugs campaign programme organised by the Makokoba Covid-19 task force yesterday, Bulawayo Provincial Affairs and Devolution Minister Judith Ncube said Bulawayo has lost its good name to drugs.

The taskforce which was formed to prevent the spread of the virus in the suburb, is now tackling other issues affecting people in Makokoba.

“Bulawayo was known as ‘umuzi wamakhosi lamakhosikazi’ but these makhosi and makhosikazis are boozing at Ingutsheni.

There are several young people whose brains are affected due to addiction to drugs and a lot of them are from western suburbs, especially Makokoba,” Minister Ncube said.

She said drug abuse has also become a big problem in schools because no matter how much pupils are searched, they always find a way to smuggle the drugs into the school premises.

“At a certain school here in Bulawayo they say they used to thoroughly search their pupils for drugs only to discover later that their boys were hiding the drugs in their ties’ overlap.

The school authorities said it was only when the boys started behaving strangely that they carried out further investigations and discovered that the boys were smuggling the drugs inside the school premises despite the searches. Some teachers had by then threatened to stop teaching the violent boys,” she said.

Minister Ncube urged parents to educate their children on the dangers of abusing drugs because once they become addicted, it is very difficult to stop the abuse.

She said all parents should allow other elders to take part in disciplining their children as it takes a village to raise a child.

The Minister commended the community for coming up with the anti-drug abuse programme which is in line with President Mnangagwa’s initiative of fighting drug abuse among the youth.

The President launched the National Anti-Drug and Substance Abuse Campaign during the National Youth Day celebrations in February. This year’s National Youth Day commemorations were held under the theme: ‘‘Alleviating Substance and Drug Abuse by the Youth.”

Makokoba MP, Mr James Sithole said when he visited Ingutsheni to meet one famous Makokoba youth, he saw a number of them who were taken to the institution for abusing drugs. He did not name the famous youth.

“When I visited that institution to look for that one person, many of them approached me saying they are from Makokoba as well, and when I researched about those youngsters, they started taking drugs and became addicted to an extent that they could no longer live without them,” he said.

Mr Sithole said he now takes time driving around Makokoba and stopping at several places just to observe what would be happening. He said the youth who will be in groups abuse drugs judging from their behaviour.

A resident, Mr Tinashe Nyakauya said before going to Ingutsheni, the youths become very serious criminals who commit crime even during the day when people are watching just to get money to buy drugs.

“The police are not doing their job because the drug peddlers’ houses are known but the culprits are not being arrested. We have given them tip offs several times but you see them taking the person and bringing them back after two hours. We do not understand the reason why these people are not arrested,” he said.

Detective Constable Sharon Sibve of ZRP Bulawayo CID Drugs and Narcotics section said some people were even abusing medication. She brought samples of drugs and explained their dangers to the youth and parents.

“Everyone should know that drugs are dangerous. The amount taken determines the effect of the drug. Our bodies react differently to different substances, please youth do not let the pressure from friends take away your innocence, drugs kill,” she said.

Senators recently urged Government to name and shame drug peddlers and courts to pass deterrent sentences.