Introduction;
Drugs Is any substance (other than food) that is used to prevent, diagnose, treat, or relieve symptoms of a disease or abnormal condition . Drugs can also affect how the brain and the rest of the body work and cause changes in mood, awareness, thoughts, feelings, or behavior.
Drugs Abuse , The use of illegal drugs or the use of prescription or over-the-counter drugs for purposes other than those for which they are meant to be used, or in excessive amounts. Drug abuse may lead to social, physical, emotional, and job-related problems. Is the wrong and harmful intake of drugs especially without a doctor’s prescription.
Drug's Trafficking; Drug trafficking is a global illicit trade involving the cultivation, manufacture, distribution and sale of substances which are subject to drug prohibition laws. Is the selling, transporting, or importing illegal drugs. Another name for this crime is drug distribution.
Form's of drugs trafficking;
- The Direct Participant
Transporting illegal drugs across international borders by direct courier is an every-day occurrence. Some methods are simple while others can be quite sophisticated requiring special skills or equipment. Three common methods involve concealing drugs: on a person, inside people or animals and inside objects or vehicles.
- The Unwitting Participant
Taking advantage of an unsuspecting courier has the advantage of distancing the drug trafficker from the narcotics when crossing the border, reducing the risk of arrest. Public transportation, postal services and legal cargo shipping companies are three examples of delivery services that are taken advantage of. Because they transport larger quantities with fewer shipments, the profit margin increases making these forms of transport even more favorable.
The reality is that the production of illegal drugs for western markets has a devastating impact in source countries in terms of violence, exploitation of vulnerable and indigenous people and environmental destruction .
Causes of drug trafficking;
In a country like Nigeria that is burdened with massive youth unemployment, corruption, poverty and a general loss of hope in the government, this financial rewards act as a huge inducement for engagement in drugs trafficking. Another factor is the quest of Nigerian youths to make money big and fast.
- Financial burdens; Global drug trafficking is a multibillion dollar business. According to a March 2014 CNN world report, the Mexican drug cartels alone made between $19 and $29 billion dollars in sales per year. This huge amount means that people are willing to take massive risks to perpetuate their drug trade.
- Get-rich-quickly syndrome; Another factor is the quest of Nigerian youths to make money big and fast. The drugs trade though with its attendant risks is a quick way to make money. Youths that have weak and low moral structures can easily fall victim to this evil act of trafficking drugs from one nation to other.
- Youth unemployment; In a country like Nigeria that is burdened with massive youth unemployment, corruption, poverty and a general loss of hope in the government, this financial rewards act as a huge inducement for engagement in drugs trafficking.
- Peer pressure; This is an instance whereby if a friend takes or uses heroin or other substance, it is possible to get the other one influenced into the system.
- Addiction; Healing from drug addiction takes time. For an addict to make up his/ her mind to stop using hard drug is a big step. Being addicted makes him/her afraid of what would happen if he/she does not keep taking the drug. People often would not try quitting until they are forced to, because it seems too hard. But when the addict stops using the drugs, it upsets his/her body and brain. He or she might fall sick for a while, and feel a very strong need to take the drug.
- Sexual involvement; People take hard or illicit drugs in order to gain sexual vigour. This is a result of suffering from erectile dysfunction while having sexual relationship with loved ones. As a result of this, they use hard drugs.
- Break-up relationship; Using hard drugs to “cope” with a break-up relationship is a very bad idea. It is one of the best reasons to get addiction. Break-up in relationship is very hurting though, that is why we see many people end up their lives heroin, meth, cocaine and others in order to quickly put behind the break-up experience in them.
Influence of drugs trafficking on youths;
Drug trafficking can have a serious negative impact on youth, in a number of ways.
- Firstly, exposure to drugs can increase the risk of drug use and addiction.
- Secondly, involvement in drug trafficking can lead to violence, gang activity, and other crimes.
- Thirdly, drug trafficking can disrupt education and create instability in families and communities.
- Lastly, drug trafficking can also lead to financial problems for youths and their families. So overall, the influence of drug trafficking on youth can be very damaging.
Control of drugs abuse:
Drug trafficking prevention.They are a number of ways to prevent youth from getting involved in drug trafficking.
- Firstly, education is key. Teaching youths about the dangers of drugs and drug trafficking can help to prevent them from getting involved.
- Secondly, providing positive role models and support systems can also help to keep youths away from drugs.
- Thirdly, strengthening laws and enforcement can deter drug trafficking activity.
- lastly, providing economic opportunities for youth can also help to prevent them from getting involved in drug trafficking.
- Reduction of target market; This involves bringing about a decline in the consumption of these substances thereby reducing demand. This will in turn cut down on the revenue of the drug traffickers, hence making the business less lucrative. This would entail counseling, rehabilitation and reintegration of drug dependent individuals into the society in order to help them stay off drugs.
- Adequate funding and training of security operatives In as much as the government has done well by setting up the NDLEA, the agencies involved with the war on drugs should be adequately funded both by government and concerned citizens. Added to funding, they also have to be routinely trained to enable them keep up with the ever changing war. If necessary, adequate legislation should be put in place to further punish those involved in the sale of these drugs.
- Orientation and education of the youth; The majority of those associated with illicit drugs both with respect to abuse and trafficking are youths, this means that if the youths are kept away from drugs, the entire problem is almost solved. The Nigerian youth needs to be further oriented on the dangers involved with engaging in trafficking and abuse of drugs and not to see it as a means of livelihood. This orientation should not be left only to be done by the government or educational institutions but parents and guardians should also step up and play their role in this. Use of full-body scanning machines The United States has donated full body s safecanning machines for the Lagos, Kano, Abuja and Port Harcourt international airports and has provided security training and orientation airport officers. The machines have proved effective in catching smugglers and couriers taking cocaine from Latin America to Europe by way of Nigeria.
Strong law and good governance;Three institutions can be reformed to promote good governance: the state, the private sector and civil society. However, among different cultures, the need and demand for reform can vary depending on the priorities of that country's society. A variety of country level initiatives and international movements put emphasis on various types of governance reform.
Each movement for reform establishes criteria for what they consider good governance based on their own needs and agendas.
- Constant monitoring with technology in bloggs/websites; Various Web pages and blogs are the most common source of trade in drugs. Therefore, there is need for the security agencies; NDLEA and others to spring into
- Actions by tracking the nefarious activities of drug peddling.
- Adequate intelligence gathering on drug trafficking; Strategic intelligence focuses on the current picture of drug trafficking from cultivation to distribution that can be used for management decision making, resource deployment, and policy planning. Need for effective air monitoring The AIRCOP launched at Murtala Muhammed International Airport and communication among the agencies involved should be more effective and enhanced.
There are a number of advantages to controlling drug trafficking.
- Firstly, it can reduce the harm caused by drugs in society.
- Secondly, it can improve public health, as drug use can lead to a range of health problems.
- Thirdly, it can reduce crime, as drug trafficking is often linked to other crimes, such as violence and money laundering.
- Fourthly, it can reduce the flow of money to criminal organizations.
Lastly, it can help to create a more stable and secure society.
If only drug trafficking is regulated we see a better community and great impactful youth's.
References;
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) (2019).
World drug report 2019. Available at: https://wdr.unodc.org/
wdr2019/en/exsum.html (Accessed March 18, 2020).
2. United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (2017). The drug
problem and organized crime, illicit financial flows, corruption
and terrorism. Vienna, Austria: United Nations. [Google
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3. United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (2018). Drug use
in Nigeria. Available at: https://www.unodc.org/documents/
data-and-analysis/statistics/Drugs/
Drug_Use_Survey_Nigeria_2019_BOOK.pdf (Accessed March
18, 2020).
4. Ohuabunwa SI. (2019). Tackling the menace of drug abuse:
a disruptive innovative approach. Available at: https://
psnnational.org/index.php/2019/08/01/association-of-
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holding-in-kano-state-june-1-4-2019/ (Accessed March 18,
2020).
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