Drug addiction among Kebbi teachers

Kebbi State governor, Atiku Bagudu, recently raised the alarm about the rising cases of drug addiction among teachers in the state. The revelation was shocking and the public expression of this grave concern by the chief executive of a state was somewhat unusual. But this can only presuppose that the menace was already assuming a crisis dimension.  Indeed, the governor actually alluded to his visit to a school in a particular community in the state where one of the elders of the community  informed him that nine out of the eleven teachers in the school were known by residents to be notable  drug addicts!

This development is unsettling, judging by teachers’ calling  as purveyors of knowledge and moulders of character.  The governor’s apprehension should be understood against the backdrop that this is not a case of a few aberrant and irresponsible adults making wrong choices which could have been discounted as a reflection of the decadence in the society. The adults involved are teachers who were required to impart knowledge and bequeath a moral compass to children. True, there seems to be hopelessness across the land and there are excuses everywhere. Nonetheless, the very fact of the content and significance of teachers’ vocation naturally imposes on them a duty to be above board and exemplary. Sadly, that obviously is not the situation in Kebbi State and perhaps in some other states of the federation.

It goes without saying that, without timely intervention, the future of youths under teachers who are drug addicts is inevitably imperilled. Or what kind of knowledge will a teacher impart when his or her reasoning has been impaired by drug addiction?  What moral lessons can a drug addict teach his or her students?  For instance, how will a teacher who is a drug addict correct students who are into drugs? Unfortunately, these set of teachers are expected to provide leadership to children, the most vulnerable and impressionable members of the society who learn very fast from what they see. This state of affair is ominous, unacceptable and must not be allowed to continue in the state. The governor has done well by raising the alarm but he should follow it up with pragmatic steps to arrest the drift. Children should not be in the care of the demented minds which drug addicts are. It reflects a leadership failure that may result in throwing away the future of tomorrow’s leaders.

It is heartening that Governor Bagudu has called on the state chapters of the Nigerian Union Teachers (NUT) and the Academic Staff Union of Secondary Schools (ASUSS) to partner with the state government to reverse the disturbing trend. This approach is appropriate. The NUT and ASUSS surely have a role to play by persuading their delinquent colleagues to toe the line of decency, but this particular challenge confronting the educational system in the state is beyond what can be entrusted to trade unions to resolve.  The leadership—political, traditional and religious—at all levels in the state should work in a coordinated fashion to kill the monster.

We urge the state government to take the lead by conducting further research to determine the extent of the rot.  It should find out whether the addiction has spread to students. It will also be helpful to unravel the motivations for drug addiction among teachers in the state. These steps are important to ensure that the symptoms are not being treated while the cause is left unattended to. It should be stressed that the use of illicit drugs is a criminal offence. Therefore, the police should be involved in an effort to stop the antisocial behaviour. Also, the process of recruiting teachers in the state should be reviewed. A recruitment process that could not filter out drug addicts and separate them from wholesome persons is patently defective and not thorough.

It is also evident that the Inspectorate Division of the Ministry of Education, if any, in the state has not been up and doing; otherwise, it would have nipped the problem in the bud before it took this frightening dimension. We urge the government of Kebbi State to treat the matter with utmost seriousness. It should  ensure that the approach to be  adopted  is one that  will confront this challenge head-on, especially now that there are reports that codeine and other illicit drugs are being abused at an alarming rate in several states in the North.