During a motion on programmes to curb drug and substance
abuse on Thursday, Nkulumane MP, Desire Moyo urged the government to build
specific rehabilitation centres saying hospitals were not equipped to deal with
drug abuse issues.
However, clinical psychologists believe rehabilitation
centres will not cure the drug usage problem as long as the drug scourge is not
curbed in communities.
According to the Nkulumane MP, the increase in drug abuse
is because of poverty as well as lack of employment in the country, claiming
that this leads to other illegal acts.
“This is also causing an increase in murder cases as well
as any other crimes, including road accidents. In Bulawayo, we have Mpilo as
well as UBH Hospital. They are trying by all means to rehabilitate drug addicts
but those hospitals were not meant or designed to take care of such,” Moyo
said.
“For example, two weeks ago, where I come from in Nkulumane
Constituency, we buried one person who died at Ingutsheni Hospital. That person
was killed by one of the patients. The person was murdered at night and was
found dead in the morning. This is all because those hospitals were not
designed for drug addicts, but mental cases.”
Moyo said the government should construct specified
rehabilitation centres and make sure that the private sector is allowed to
contribute to that.
“The Government should also promote artists to increase
awareness of drug and substance abuse,” said the legislator.
In an interview with CITE, Ingutsheni Hospital Clinical
Director, Dr Wellington Ranga confirmed “someone died,” from the institution
but explained that curbing drug and substance abuse needed more than
rehabilitation centres.
“The community is where people are supposed to be living
not in Ingutsheni but if people are not able to live with their relatives at
the community at the end of the day and dump them at Ingutsheni then start
looking for things to blame us it’s very unfair. I don’t agree with the concept
of rehabilitation centres and not that it’s coming from politicians,” he said.
Dr Ranga explained that the community must address the
reasons why people resort to drugs.
“Firstly, if you find the community trying to chase away
people from their community, it means they are failing. In this case, whether
it’s a politician or a pastor they are not wanting to admit that they are
failing and wanting to shift the problem to something in calling for a proper
drug rehab centre,” said the clinical director.
“What’s wrong with someone with an addiction? Is it because
they are sick or the community where they are has a problem? The problem is
both the community and the person are sick and if trying to take one person out
of it, the community will create another one. This concept or fallacy about
rehab centres doesn’t work anywhere.”
Dr Ranga said the focus should be on solving the problem.
“Politicians should go into the community and solve the
problem that’s where it’s coming from because if you don’t sort the origin of
the problem, you are trying to address the need to say let’s set up this kind
of thing,’ he said, adding that would create a situation where people blame
each other.
“The doing is in preventing that thing from happening and
that thing is in the community because people don’t take drugs because they are
not in a rehab centre. People take drugs because they are living in a
community, which is twisted. If you don’t sort out that community forget about
rehab this and that. People will always get drunk, addicted and be a nuisance.”
CITE
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