Story by Josephine Mugiyo
President Emmerson Mnangagwa says his government will be ruthless with drug peddlers in the wake of rampant abuse of drugs and illicit substances by youths countrywide.
Drug and substance abuse among young people has become a major source of worry for parents and the nation at large.
The supply chain of drugs is woven intricately and easy access to the drugs has created a generation of addicts.
The government and other key stakeholders have, however, put in place various initiatives to deal decisively with the rampant scourge.
President Mnangagwa says the government will be ruthless with drug peddlers, highlighting the need to stop the supply chain if the country is to win the war against drugs.
The President was speaking on the sidelines of the AU summit ahead of the national youth day to be held in Lupane this Tuesday.
“As you may be aware, as government we have instructed the police that anyone who is found drunk anywhere must be arrested and tell us where they got the drugs. So, the police will make a follow-up until we get to the root cause and we are asking all institutions in the country including churches, schools to work together to make sure that wherever we find people dealing with drugs, we are going to be ruthless with that to make sure we protect our younger generation from drugs,” President Mnangagwa said.
He also appealed to parents and guardians to work with the police in combating drug abuse as he hinted at more severe penalties for drug peddlers.
“For me, I have informed the police to say when you find someone saying they are high, arrest them and ask them to disclose where they got the drugs from. We also think the parents of these kids should take responsibility, if they are unable to control their children they must report them to the police because that will save their children. We are going to be harsh in dealing with this issue, especially those who bring the drugs into the country. We may down the line future look at the sentencing of drug peddlers and change the law on sentencing.”
President Mnangagwa is expected to grace the 2023 National Youth Day commemorations set for Lupane this Tuesday where the focus is on ending drug abuse by the youths.
