Drug use among Northern women, IDPs alarming – Niger First Lady

Wife of the Niger State Governor, Dr. Amina Abubakar Bello has lamented the high spate of drugs use and abuse in the Northern part of Nigeria. The Niger first lady called for drastic measures to curb what she described as the alarming rate of drug abuse among women and children in the north.
She raised the alarm on Monday in Abuja at a press briefing organised by Reconnect Health Development Initiative on free drug rehabilitation and detoxification for internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the North- East.

She said drastic steps need to be taken to curb the habit if the country is to safeguard the future generation, adding that the issue of drug abuse was not only prevalent in the IDPs camps but in most homes in the north.
She added that it was quite unfortunate that most persons believe that people in the IDPs camps need only material things, saying that in reality, most of them have post traumatic disorder and require professional help which most often is ignored when assistance is offered.
The governor’s wife lamented that mothers who are supposed to mentor their kids are involved while the youths who are also supposed to be leaders of tomorrow are addicted to drugs to run away from their present reality.
“The issue is further compounded by the high level of unemployment in the country and poverty closely followed by people’s inability to discuss addiction because it is viewed as a taboo.