+The Long List Of Deadly Drugs They Take To Get High
Habeeb Uthman popularly known as Obama DMW is a known affiliate of Davido and has been regularly around him since 2017. On Tuesday, June 29, 2021, Obama drove himself to Ever Care Hospital in Lekki to complain of breathing difficulties. He was admitted to the hospital and unfortunately died a few hours later. It was later reported that this promising entertainment executive died as a result of heart failure that emanated from drug overdose. Obama DMW was also a music executive cum artistes manager and founded his music label Obama Music Worldwide (OMW). Obama DMW is the second close associate of Davido, who has died in the last year. In December 2020, Davido’s bodyguard Tijani Olamilekan aka TeeJay died after a battle with an illness.
The story of Obama’s death has been linked to drug overdose by those close to him. This is not the first time that Davido’s associates have been linked with drug overdose and eventual death. Tagbo Umenike was a friend of Davido. He died in 2017 from excessive alcohol consumption, according to autopsy reports.
Away from entertainers, the story of Chidinma Ojukwu has been one of the most trending in the last three weeks. She’s a 21-year-old University undergraduate alleged to have murdered SuperTV CEO Usifo Ataga under the influence of hard drugs. She smoked Skunk and LOUD and drank alcoholic beverages with her victim. (When I tried to check on what Loud was, I found out that it is a stronger and quicker reaction of marijuana and also it has a very strong smell, so this explains that she has been in drug use for long to be able to stand the effect of Loud, being it way stronger than marijuana)
A further investigation by City People has revealed that many Nigerian entertainers particularly those in the hip-hop music industry as well as Fuji musicians cannot go on stage or hold a successful performance without drug enhancement which ultimately has an effect on their performances and those they are performing for.
A few days ago, two popular musicians, Peruzzi and Samklef announced on social media that they have quit drinking and smoking, this is just to substantiate the fact that most of these entertainers are actually hooked on drugs.
The overall effect of this is that so many Nigerian youths see these entertainers and big boys as their role models and mentors and they tend to practice what they see them do at clubs, parties, events and on social media. For instance, many of the new generation dances like shaku-shaku, zanku, sop-p, focus, shedibala, legbegbe, gbese etc, were created as a result of drug overdose but they have become a norm in society today. As a matter of fact, a reliable source revealed that the activities of some of these entertainers under the influence of drugs are what become trending on social media and finally become accepted surprisingly at some place of worship where decency is expected to be the order of the day.
EFFECT OF NIGHTLIFE ON NIGERIAN YOUTHS
Today, one of the most lucrative businesses in the country is running a club where youths gather to relax, unwind and have fun. It has equally become the den of many drug abusers. What happens at most nightclubs as revealed by a popular DJ in Lagos whose name is withheld is to sing, dance, do drugs and go back home. According to home, the nightclub ideally should be a place of relaxation after a tedious day at work but unfortunately, what happens there can only be described in three words, dance, get high and get dirty…
Speaking further, the DJ revealed that there is arguable no club in Lagos and Abuja today where you won’t find youths doing drugs and because it is addictive, many of them get hooked on so many cheap substances that at the end of the day have negative effects on their mental health.
REPORTS FROM THE YABA PSYCHIATRIC HOME
Today at Yaba Psychiatric hospital, the bulk of patients that fill that home are a group of young boys and girls within the age of 17-27 that are hooked on drugs and have become either partially or totally derailed mentally.
The Yaba psychiatric hospital saw a 22 per cent increase in the number of new patients with different types of mental illnesses in 2018 – along with a 50 per cent increase in the number of patients struggling with substance abuse.
One in four Nigerians – some 50 million people – are suffering from some sort of mental illness, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). The World Mental Health Day – finds the country nowhere near equipped to tackle the problem. There are only eight federal neuropsychiatric hospitals in Nigeria. With dire budget and staffing shortfalls prompting doctors to go on strike, leave the country, or quit the medical profession altogether, the prognosis looks as grim for psychiatric care at Yaba hospital as it does for Nigeria’s healthcare system as a whole.
NIGERIA RANKS 5TH IN SUICIDE RATE
Reports recently ranked Nigeria as 5th in the world with the highest suicide rate of an average of six suicides per month. Substance use has been attributed as a major factor that leads people to commit suicide. Also, the increase in cases of sudden deaths among youths in the country is reportedly connected to opioid overdose, which is the most common drug injected by youths.
Going by the recent trend, and if nothing is urgently done, Nigeria stands the risk of losing more than 100 youths daily to opioid overdose. This is because Nigeria’s population is said to be about 3% of the world population but 6% of the world population of cannabis users. Again, a report has also revealed that 14% of the world population who misuse pharmaceutical opioids are reportedly in Nigeria, thereby making Nigeria one of the countries in the world with the highest population of people who misuse tramadol and codeine cough syrup. From the foregoing, substance abuse may become one of the leading causes of death in Nigeria.
Also worrisome is the increasing drug supply via the internet including the anonymous online marketplace known as the “darknet”.
SO WHAT IS DARKNET?
Basically, the darknet or dark web or deep web is a maze of secret websites which can be accessed only through encrypted channels. Unlike our traditional internet search activities which can be easily traced by governments, the darknet is a tough nut to crack as the person’s identity remains anonymous. Nowadays, darknet has become a hidden platform meant for the sale and purchase of many of the contraband items like drugs, arms, pornographic content and other illegal activities. On dark web, people can search the internet without leaving their online footprint and without fear of being caught. However, if you are caught by the authorities indulging in illegal activities on this hidden platform, you can land in jail. With its quality to provide an anonymous cover, the platform has become a safe haven for criminals dealing in every kind of illegal activity. It has also become a cause of worry for the governments as terrorists may use the platform for their nefarious activities.
HOW THE GOVERNMENT IS TACKLING DRUG ABUSE
In a bid to rescue Nigerian youths and adolescents from the alarming menace of drug abuse, especially in the North, the Presidential Advisory Committee on the Elimination of Drug Abuse said it was taking steps to curb the menace.
The Chairman of the committee, Brigadier General Mohammed Buba Marwa (rtd), said that data had shown that a good number of youths were exposed to drugs, particularly in the northern part of the country.
Noting that the situation is alarming, he said government, corporate organisations, non-governmental organisations, civil society groups, journalists, religious-based organisations and everyone must be involved in the fight against the menace of drug abuse. He said drug abuse had become a threat to education, security, the economy and the future of the country.
Immediate Past President of the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria, Ahmed Yakasai, told journalists that in Nigeria, the issue of drug abuse had reached an unprecedented level across all the geopolitical zones of the country. Nevertheless, the PSN and her technical groups, PNS-Narcotics and Drug Abuse Committee, as well as state branches across the country, have been educating people on the dangers of drug abuse.
Registrar, Pharmacist Council of Nigeria (PCN), Elijah Mohammed said that blocking the supply source, demand reduction through public education, social re-orientation and moral or ethical regeneration could help curtail demand for drugs and reduce the effects significantly.
SOME KNOWN EFFECTS OF THESE DRUGS
Some of the side effects of drug abuse include lightheadedness, dizziness, nausea, vomiting, shortness of breath, sedation, allergic reactions, constipation, abdominal pain, rash, itching, and addiction.
Others are mood swings, anxiety, depression, irritability, euphoria, periods of hyperactivity, agitation, trouble in interpersonal relationships and many more.
The Many Cheap DRUGS Youths Are Now Hooked On
Tramadol, Codeine, Opioids, Lipton soaked with Regal gin, Dry pawpaw leaves, Hypo in Lacasera, Tom Tom in Lacasera, Spirogyra, Rephnol, Gum, 10 days Urine, Methylated spirit in codeine, Methylated spirit in Coke, Dry plantain leaves, Cannabis (Igbo) in Regal gin, Burnt Tyres, Burnt Bitumen. Many of these substances come cheaply and are easily accessible and that has been one of the reasons many youths find them easy to use; and of course, they are highly addictive.
