When Did Substance Abuse Become The New Cool?

What do you think of when you hear ‘Substance abuse’? Fear? Desire? Lust? Disgust? Blame? Shame? Hate? Nothing? Well, for some – loved ones we cherish, friends we could die for, family that we adore –  it’s the beginning of the end.

A woman told a heart-rending story of how she lost her younger brother to addiction – ‘codeine diet’!

We watched with our hands-on-heads and mouths-ajar as a friend showed us an Instagram video of a person whose journey to substance abuse had turned them into a spectacle!

At every street corner, whether the rich people’s crescents or the not-so-rich backyard, there is a deal going down. Money is changing hands, some powdery substance, tablet, dried leaves or vials of medicine is being exchanged.

Let’s face it – it’s everywhere o, and who’s going to stop it? Well, people are stepping up to the challenge.

The MTN Foundation in collaboration with various stakeholders (such as the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria, Association of Community Pharmacists, Association of Psychiatrists of Nigeria, etc) just launched a project tagged ASAP (Anti-Substance Abuse Programme), on Wednesday, December 19, in Lagos.

ASAP is a multi-stakeholder intervention aimed at increasing awareness of substance abuse and addiction among youths.

The goal of the programme is to discourage first-time usage and casual substance abuse nationwide.

At the ASAP launch event opened by the Chairman of the MTN Foundation, Prince Julius Adelusi-Adeluyi, he commented on the significance of the ASAP initiative to Nigeria’s ecosystem due to the constant rise in the prevalence of substance abuse among Nigerian youths.

The Executive Secretary, MTN Foundation, Nonny Ugboma, shared the necessity of the initiative –  to save the young ones, the future.

The former Director General, National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, Mr. Otunba Ipinmisho, stated in a 2016 interview, that 40% of Nigerian youths are on drug abuse!

Various stakeholders including Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria, Association of Community Pharmacists, and Association of Psychiatrists of Nigeria, who gathered to witness the launch make startling declaration from their wealth of knowledge.

Dr. Maymunah Kadiri, Consultant Neuro-Psychiatrist, shared how a parent called her at 3:00am to inform her that he was rushing to her with his child in the car – the man’s son had overdosed on a substance and was delirious.

Beyond substance abuse, Dr. Atinuke Onayiga, Public Health Consultant (Rep. C.A.N.), shared that strong parental influence stopped her from using substances when she encountered them. And this was an important factor that parents have to bear in mind.

It was also revealed at the event that a 2017 study showed that at least 3 million bottles of codeine were sold daily, in only two states in Nigeria.

That is the reality.

Lessons learnt from the press event were simply mind boggling! You cannot begin to imagine the amount of substances people abuse – tyres, faeces, paint, glue?! The list is endless!

It needs to stop, and it needs to stop now, which is why we are looking forward to everything on this ASAP initiative.

There is a lot to learn and many ways to help.

The world will know we did.