Codeine ban: This Table you’re shaking…

ON May 1, the Federal Government, through the Ministry of Health, announced a ban on any cough syrup containing codeine or intake of codeine in its entirety. The move expectedly generated mixed reactions from Nigerians.  Inasmuch as I wish to applaud the government for what some believed to be a right decision, I would like to pitch my tent on the other side of the fence. You ask why? The reasons are simple. First let’s all understand how drug addiction works. If codeine really is the new cocaine for many Nigerians, especially youths in the Northern part of the country, then the announcement on the ban wouldn’t deter any addict from resorting to the use of some other substance. Of course, there are other readily-available drugs in the Nigerian market. Youths sniff methylated spirit, leather polish, lizard excreta, fumes from pit latrine, gasoline, tippex, and rubber solution. Others are nail polish cleaner, local concoctions called goskolo and a natural stimulant plant called zakani. Oh, let’s not forget the refuse and dung of animals.

In my opinion, if the government really wishes to stop a problem, it ought to find the root cause, uproot it, then get help for those already affected. We don’t even have enough facilities to cater for addicts and those in the process of rehabilitation Alhaji Ahmed Yakasai Fpsn, the President of Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria had, on several occasions, called the attention of the current Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole (December, 2015); Speaker of the House of Representatives Rt. Hon Yakubu Dogara (January, 2016); President Muhammadu Buhari (April, 2016), the public (August, 2016) and the Senate President, Rt. Hon Bukola Saraki (October, 2017) to the chaotic nature of the drug distribution system, and the need to implement the National Drug Distribution Guidelines (NDDGs) without further ado and later more specifically on the abuse issues. There were also other calls to governors and traditional rulers that appeared to have garnered momentary efforts but not on the scale of the #BBCAfricaEye report.

In an August 3, 2017 article by Ofoyeju Mitchell, the Head Public Affairs of the NDLEA, she claimed that the agency was set to construct a modern rehabilitation center in Abuja and some other parts of the country. She maintained that this decision was unveiled during the grand finale event marking the 2017 International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking. So, if we don’t have a proper rehabilitation centre in Nigeria, how and where are these addicts supposed to get help? Well, because of the sensitivity of this issue, I called up some  of the supposed rehabilitation centres in the country. Some, after I had introduced myself, dropped  the call and switched off their devices while some others were simply house or road contractors.

The ban on codeine shows how incompetent the Ministry of Health is, together with whoever advises the Federal Government on issues of health, addiction and youths. There was no consultative forum; no major stakeholder was involved, and there is no law in place to back up the pronouncement. How much more of a joke could this government be? We have the Senate drawing up frameworks to make sure the argument holds up in our courts. Someone might argue about why they have to wait for the Senate, but why won’t they? The data generated by the Senate which shows that three million bottles are consumed in the North alone is what is still in use and being quoted. Now, multiply that by the number of youths in this nation. If we are working with the data from the Senate, it then means the ministry has no data on the people. If this is the case, how then is it supposed to protect these addicts, rehabilitate them or even make policies that will affect their lives positively? We are talking numbers and these numbers are human beings, the human capital investment of a nation hoping to be drug free. There are vulnerable groups, the most affected set of persons and in this case the drug users constitute such a large number. The 2016 statistics showed that 40 per cent of Nigerian youths engaged in substance abuse

In a chat with Diane Kelechi Lawrence, the CEO of Guiding Light Foundation Pipeline, who oversees a rehabilitation center located in a Satellite Village at Oyigbo, Rivers State Nigeria, she argued that drug addiction rehabilitation is quite expensive with an average of N300,000 for a start at a private rehab center. She said most addicts couldn’t afford this and asked the government to work out a framework to institute a rehab center at least in every local government in Nigeria to ease the situation. Now, what changed? BBC Africa’s “Sweet, sweet codeine,” a documentary on the impact of cough syrups containing codeine. All stakeholders need to facilitate continuous discussion on drug/ substance abuse with a view to nipping the menace in the bud.

Former Director General of National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Professor Dora Akunyili, did well with NAFDAC and was ready to defend her stand. She set up institutions and teams to help her achieve her dream. She placed Nigeria back in the good books. Professor Adewole should borrow a page out of her many books. Banning codeine without support groups, rehabilitation centres and acknowledging the existence of these people is a sham.

• Odigwe is a social media campaigner