Students and young Nigerians have been advised to flee from drugs if they desire to attain their potential and become responsible and successful adults.
The advice was handed down to Senior School students at Goshen High School, Kubwa, FCT, during a Safe Without Drugs (SWiD) Initiative Campaign in secondary schools by the Progressive Impact Organization for Community Development, PRIMORG, on Friday, 7th February 2025.
PRIMORG uses the project to promote Drugs Demand Reduction in collaboration with the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA.
“Drug abuse is a grave issue. It damages your future, destroys your destiny, and makes you a burden and dependent on people associated with you. The fact is that you will not attain your full potential in life if you are hooked on drugs.
“Therefore, as a student, you must run away from drug abuse or the use of any psychoactive substance – as it is wreaking people’s lives and homes and making a lot of individuals useless. We don’t want you to touch drugs because it destroys one’s future,” said the Executive Director of the Progressive Impact Organisation for Community Development, PRIMORG, Okhiria Agbonsuremi.
He told the senior secondary 1, 2, and 3 students who were in attendance that the essence of the advocacy is to sensitize them to the dangers drug abuse can cause and equip them with skills to be able to repel any form of substance abuse.
Agbonsuremi lauded the school management for cooperation and the students for their rapt attention during the enlightenment exercise and interest in joining an anti-drugs club formed in the course of the programme while revealing PRIMORG’s readiness to partner with more schools, parents, and organizations to expose early the menace of drug abuse to students and youths.
“The high point of today’s event is setting up the SWiD Club to sustain the messages in schools. We (PRIMORG) are always glad to partner with more schools, parents, teachers, and organizations to reach more students before they leave secondary school and enter the more complicated world.
On his part, NDLEA’s Assistant Superintendent of Narcotics, Ahmed Abdulfatai Ismail, cautioned the students against accepting drugs from anybody; and avoid secondary smoking.
Ismail taught the students coping skills when they find themselves in environments where people are using drugs and tasked parents to pay attention to the contents their wards are exposed to on the internet and social media.
He stressed that preventing young people from becoming drug abusers remains a better and easier way out for any society, hence the reason NDLEA is partnering with PRIMORG and other organizations to raise awareness and reach out to students early to stop them from being destroyed.
“Do not use drugs or accept them from anybody, and when you stay around in a place where people are smoking, you are as good as the person smoking – so you must stay away from secondary smoking.
“For parents and guidance, you have to talk to your wards about drugs, don’t think they don’t know, and limit them from visiting unhealthy websites. I tell you that prevention is always healthier and better than cure,” Ismail warned.
Towing the same line, the National Coordinator, Re-Orientation Advocates of Nigeria, Charles Olufemi’s message to the students was, “Drugs can end all your dreams.”
His words: “There is no reason for anybody to play with drug abuse. People go into drugs because of their level of knowledge, and I can tell you that free drugs can end your dream.
“Don’t be excited about those musicians you see smoking; in a few years, you will find out that they are no more, and what has happened is that the problems associated with smoking break them down – so do not emulate them.
“Drugs cannot change your lives and situations that you encounter. It doesn’t resolve emotional problems or academic or marital issues. So, nothing should take you into drug abuse because drugs are dangerous. Drugs end lives and dreams,” Olufemi cautioned.