LARGE quantities of sex-enhancing pills, coffee and creams on cross-border buses from South Africa and over 60kg mbanje were seized as Masvingo police launched its “No to Dangerous Drugs and Illicit Substances” campaign on Monday.
The launch saw the entire police provincial command led by the officer commanding, Commissioner David Mahoya, join junior details, including detectives and members of the dog section and the canines, at roadblocks mounted along the Masvingo-Mutare road, and the Craft Centre across Mucheke River bridge, along the Masvingo-Beitbridge road, to stop and search all vehicles and buses.
Within a few minutes of the start of the exercise, Mahoya announced that over 60kg mbanje had been recovered and 100 people arrested at the roadblock along the MasvingoMutare road. They were arrested for transporting various drugs and other illicit substances while a number of pirate taxis were impounded.
“For the short period we have undertaken this operation, we have recovered 60kg mbanje and have also apprehended people with an assortment of other drugs and illicit substances,” he said.
“The campaign will be an ongoing exercise and we are going to need a lot of support from other stakeholders, such as churches and the general public, because we have a big problem in the society.
“I appeal to the public to help us with information on those that supply and sell and use drugs and other harmful substances so that the law takes its course and we reduce the problem of drug abuse.”
Mahoya said the police regularly carried out similar exercises, but were escalating the operations to try and rout out the problem of drug and substance abuse that he blamed for the increase in violent crimes within communities.
Different stakeholders welcomed the operation, which came at a time when the drug and substance abuse is also heightening as evidenced by the number of especially young adults and youths suffering from mental problems that are flooding mental health facilities around the country.
A social development officer with the Masvingo Provincial Social Development Office, Charity Manenji, said the law-enforcement agents’ efforts to stamp out drug and substance abuse could not have come at a better time as many parents were struggling to control their children because of the increased intake of drugs and a wide array of other harmful substances.
“Parents must take particular care to monitor the activities of their children for any change in their behaviour in order to be able to quickly seek assistance for them so that their lives are not ruined, because they are likely to get involved in crime that might land them in jails and abandoning their education,” she said, adding that drug and substance abuse among the adult population affected work and productivity which, in turn, has a negative impact on the livelihood of families.
“It also results in cases of Gender Based Violence (GBV) and sexual violence, which promote the spread of HIV and Aids, serious injuries to people or even murder. All people in different communities must help to expose those involved in the distribution of drugs and harmful substances because it is everyone’s responsibility and not that of the police, those in authority and the Government to bring such people to book,” said Manenji.
Communities also needed to take an active role in helping victims of drug and substance abuse as some would have fallen victim due to different difficult circumstances such as lack of jobs and money, violence in homes and peer pressure, she added. For people that find themselves in difficult circumstances such as disability, lack of school fees and food, Manenji said they could approach the Social Development Department (formerly social welfare) for assistance.
She said the Department had programmes such as the Food Deficit Mitigation Strategy and the Sustainable Livelihoods programme under which people can be helped to undertake projects to help especially the youth to keep them occupied while producing their own food and earning some income.
Also being offered by the Department is the Harmonised Cash Transfers that can help families to get out of difficult circumstances and therefore away from drug and substance abuse. Her views were echoed by Masvingo Consumer Council of Zimbabwe acting consumer protection officer, Ketai Zvinonzwa, who said the exercise would help safeguard the youth from falling into the use of drugs, which exposes their health to danger.
Reverend Dennis Makawa of the Anglican Church, said drug and substance had become a big challenge that was threatening the family unit while playing havoc with the production that could help spur the development of the economy. — New Ziana
