Terrible! Here Are Toxic Drugs Consumed By Lamu Youths

The coastal counties of Kenya are infamous for rampant drug abuse due to the close proximity to the port and various national borders, where the drugs make their way. Lamu County has been notorious for maintaining the welfare of drug peddlers and users.

As a result of the wide spread drug use by Lamu youth, the level of security in the area has greatly deteriorated. The drug addicts become violent thieves in order to fund their insatiable appetite for drugs. Local leaders say they have to employ extra manpower for keeping their properties safe especially at night. The drug addicts steal anything from clothes, electronics, doors, windows and even beehives from farms.

The addicts can strike any area at any time, including stealing solar panels from mosques. The local leaders continued saying drug use in the area has soared as international drug cartels turned to the Kenyan Coast as it’s a major transit route for narcotics from Afghanistan.

The current pandemic across the world has only added problems to the situation, as most youth are either idle or jobless, giving them opportunity to be pressured into the drugs trade. School going children with free time and no supervision have also been pressured by their peers into becoming addicts.

Among the drugs used in the area is cannabis, cocaine, alcohol, hashish and heroine. Some of the addicts in the area confessed to having used the drugs for more than 10 years. The addicts in Lamu claimed to be helpless as they can’t go a day or do anything, without having first their daily consumption.

The drug addicts also discovered a powder used as a water meter preservative, that keeps meters from rusting, can actually be used as a substitute for cocaine and offer equal satisfaction once sniffed. Among the most affected towns by the drugs menace is Mkomani, Gadeni, Langoni, Bajuri and Kashmir. Lamu water and sewerage company chairman Mohamed Athman said over 400 water meters in the county were vandalized by addicts.

With most mental health facilities and rehabilitation centers in Nairobi, there’s much to be done for the youth of Lamu. There’s hope though after President Uhuru Kenyatta said the government was in the process of opening local rehabilitation centers in every county, during his state address.

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