In yesterday’s issue, we carried a story about how police in Harare nabbed a suspected drug dealer after finding him in possession of 133 grammes of Ecstasy powder, 8,58 grammes of cocaine, 43 Ecstasy tablets and a dagga-compressing machine.
Comment: NewsDay Editor
Although this incident may be an isolated case, it could be just a tip of the iceberg because over the past few years, Zimbabwe has increasingly become a hub of drug-dealing, with mainly young people using and trading in the illicit drugs.
Many theories explaining the increase in this scourge have been profferred, but the predominant argument has been that many young people are now turning to drugs as a form of escapism in the face of the political and socio-economic crisis in Zimbabwe.
Latest statistics from the Anti-Drug Abuse Association of Zimbabwe indicate that cases of drug abuse among schoolchildren were hovering above 43%, largely due to social challenges and moral decay.
This is too high a number and the implication is that there is a generation that is being raised on drugs.
The worrisome questions are: What kind of adults are they going to become? Will they ever be responsible adults, or we are just creating a generation of drug junkies?
Last year, police indicated that Harare recorded the highest rate of drug abuse in the country between 2013 and 2014 with over 100 cases recorded monthly.
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Drug abuse, although viewed just as an innocent pastime by some people, will have far-reaching repercussions in the future.
There are a number of trouble spots associated with drug abuse including suicides, homicides, accidents, and illnesses which may result in death for some youths.
It is important, therefore, for parents, teachers as well as other adults who work with children to be proactive in curbing the scourge of drug abuse among young people.
The rampant abuse of drugs by young people needs to be halted before it becomes a bonfire that will consume their lives and their future. It will be a major national loss.
Zimbabwe is said to have the highest youth unemployment in southern Africa, according to the International Council Committee.
Youths also have the highest joblessness rate among all age groups in Zimbabwe.
This means that employment creation, rather than mere political talk, should be part of concerted efforts to contain the problem.
As long as the fundamental problems affecting the youths are not addressed, then it will become virtually impossible to deal effectively with this problem.
Thoughts must be spared for these young people, many of whom dream of having their own families in future. But these will likely be dysfunctional families as the long-term after effects of the drug abuse kick in.
