The First Lady of Edo State Governor, Mrs Betsy Obaseki, has urged Nigerian youths to shun drug and substance abuse.
This was even as she stressed that abuse of prescription and non-prescription drugs has assumed a crisis dimension.
The First Lady made the call at the occasion of the 2018 International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking while addressing a large gathering of students and stakeholders from across the state in Benin City.
Betsy, who was the special guest of honour, expressed concern over the growing abuse of prescription and non-prescription drugs.
She said: “In our community, the effects of drugs are evident. The abuse of codeine cough syrups, tramadol and Rohypnol to mention a few is fast assuming a crisis dimension.”
She further said: “Students are dropping out of schools on account of drug use. Children are becoming disobedient and deviant in nature. Spouse battering and broken homes have also been traceable to substance abuse. Others have damaged their organs leading to premature deaths. Drug use is also linked to heinous crimes like murder, arson, rape and cultism.”
Speaking on the theme, ‘Listening to children and youths is the first step to help them grow healthy and safe,’ Obaseki said that the theme was aimed at encouraging preventive drug use, which was based on science.
“It brings to the front burner the fundamental role of parents and other agents of socialisation in the upbringing of children. I’m glad that we have a large number of students from different schools in this event and I commend the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) for mobilising these students.”
She urged parents to consciously prepare children who are future leaders for the daunting responsibilities ahead of them.
Her words: “Childhood is a period of significant development and a great opportunity. As children advance through adolescence, they grow, explore, and have the chance to realize their individual unique potential. This also makes them vulnerable to unhealthy behaviours, including using drugs, alcohol and tobacco.”
Obaseki, however, called on the students to be responsible and cultivate a successful mindset. “Parents can give good advice and pay expensive school fees, but the final forming of a person’s character lies in their own hands. Students, I want you to learn to be responsible. I charge you to cultivate the right perspective to becoming accomplished. Merely wishing to become a medical doctor is one thing, but it is another thing to take the right steps towards becoming a medical doctor.”
She asked the students to define their goals, choose friends that support their mission, spend every minute working towards the goals and learn to say No to people and suggestions that are not important to the actualisation of their visions.
“Winning the fight against substance abuse demands education and proper enlightenment about the dangers of drugs. We must all get involved at different levels,” said charged.
She pledged: “On my part, I will partner with the NDLEA in organising lectures and youth programmes on drug use prevention. This will provide children and youth with skills and opportunities as well as support science-based prevention to make them happy and resilient. We also hope to offer parenting skills to families and teaching social skills at schools.”
First Published 2018
