Govt Ups The Ante in The Fight Against Drug Abuse 

Govt Ups The Ante in The Fight Against Drug Abuse

Brian Rungano Temba

The setting up of a National Committee on the Elimination of Drug and Substance Abuse amongst Zimbabweans will assist in ensuring that societies are free from the vice which has had youths in a fix.
Addressing journalists during a post-cabinet media briefing yesterday Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Minister Monica Mutsvangwa said the team will address issues to do with drug and substance abuse on a grassroots level.
This development comes barely a week after Government dedicated a US $500 million budget for the war against Drugs and Substance Abuse.
“Cabinet was concerned by the drug and substance abuse scourge in Zimbabwe wreaking havoc in families and threatening the core of societal norms and values.
“Most of the dangerous drugs and substances being abused are imported, with the traffickers acting in cahoots with local drug lords and an array of criminal elements in our society.
“Following Cabinet’s decision at its last Meeting to establish an institutional framework to decisively deal with the menace, Cabinet has decided to set up a National Committee on the Elimination of Drug and Substance Abuse.
“The Committee will be empowered to come up with systematic and sustainable responses that will assist in ensuring that society is free of drug and substance abuse,” she said.
The country had been witnessing a surge of drug and substance abuse especially amongst the younger generation – something which has resulted in a high crime rate.
A blitz on drug peddlers was initiated by the government recently thousands of individuals have been arrested around the country.