Kush Pandemic…
Samura Kamara Speaks Out
By Ibrahim Alusine Kamara (Kamalo)
The spate at which the use of the substance called kush is wreaking havoc on the Sierra Leonean society is much to be desired. The state of affairs has not just caused the premature demise of a huge number of Sierra Leonean youths but has placed the country on the radar of unpleasant news headlines on the external front.
But even as precious lives are being lost to the substance amid heinous international news about the country, little has been done by the authorities to nip the menace right in its bud by the scaling up of a robust manhunt for kush importers.
As we go to press, almost all the communities across the country are prone to kush smokers, and the speed at which it is killing its users, mostly young people thought to be the handlers of our affairs in the future, makes one think it’s more of a weapon of mass destruction on lives and development foundations of nations than just merely being a drug.
Local psychiatrists have since warned against kush smoking, saying its prolonged use of at least six months could be a high death risk inevitably. And, true to it, Sierra Leonean citizens who consume it now die in droves and are being buried in mass graves, coming from the lack of a telling action to apprehend and prosecute those behind the deadly substance.
The seeming deafening inertia and negligence by concerned authorities who are responsible for staving off health hazards and protecting the lives of citizens have kindled a lot of suspicion and feeling that some top government officials may be complicit in the importation of the lethal kush substance either directly or indirectly, using their agents and collaborators.
The Bio government must, therefore, be educated that human beings are the wealth of nations and that the wealth of Sierra Leone in youngsters is being greedily consumed by kush every coming day. Yet, the concerned authorities have not hurriedly scaled up efforts to eradicate the consumption of the dangerous substance, leaving the impression that some officials of government are enjoying the largesse of the kush enterprise!
Meanwhile, many citizens are lending their voices in reaction to the Kush plague. While some Sierra Leonean critics of the political system insinuate the kush thing may be part of a project designed by some operatives of the state to quieten and disconnect the suffering masses from the daily realities of life so they would no longer think of protesting against the authorities, others link it to a project to cushion the government’s acute lack of finances, allegedly a reason why the government is delaying or paying lip service to declare the kush brouhaha an emergency, so to protect the young citizenry from premature demises.
Reactions are many from concerned citizens, all expressing sentiments that point to the devastating consequences of kush on Sierra Leonean society. And, it is believed that if the situation is left unaddressed and remains in a state of flux as it is, it then logically follows that the country will face a terrible future.
With 32 Sierra Leoneans – 8 females and 24 males – alleged kush consumers buried in a mass grave at the Kingtom Cemetery at the close of last week, the 2023 Presidential candidate of the All Peoples’ Congress (APC) party, Dr. Samura Mathew Wilson Kamara, seems to have been piqued, and describe the scenario in a dispatched public statement as “not just a solemn occasion for mourning but a stark reality and a wake-up call to the pervasive crisis that threatens the very fabric of our society.”
According to Dr. Kamara, the shadows of a profound tragedy have befallen Sierra Leone, already leading to the irreparable loss of many precious lives of our youths to the clutches of the illegal and addictive drug known as “KUSH”.
“We find ourselves at the crossroads of another emergency public health scare. The mass burial at the Kington cemetery in Freetown is not just a solemn occasion for mourning but a stark reality and a wake-up call to the pervasive crisis that threatens the very fabric of our society,” he emphasised.
Seemingly scared over the state of affairs, Dr. Samura Kamara says, “This is a call to unity, beyond political affiliations and personal interests, for the sake of our nation’s health and prosperity. The challenges we face are formidable, but not insurmountable. Together, we can turn the tide against this crisis, safeguarding our youth and ensuring a vibrant, healthy future for Sierra Leone,” adding, “Let us rise above the fray, set aside our differences, and come together for the common good. Our nation’s future, the well-being of our children, depends on it. Let us avoid igniting another stigma upon our country, after Blood Diamonds and Ebola.
If this drug menace is and/or may be spreading to our neighboring countries, then, it is advisable that for a start, we make it an active item on the Agenda of the Mano River Union.”
Read the full statement below:
𝐒𝐚𝐦𝐮𝐫𝐚𝐊𝐚𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐚. #𝐒𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐓𝐫𝐢𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐀𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭.
𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐒𝐢𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐚 𝐋𝐞𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐚𝐧𝐬 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐔𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐍𝐞𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐀𝐝𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐊𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐫 𝐃𝐫𝐮𝐠
𝐒𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐥𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐔𝐬𝐞
— for Immediate Release — 17 March 2024
Fellow Sierra Leoneans,
In the shadows of a profound tragedy that has befallen our nation, and that has already led to the irreparable loss of many precious lives of our youths, including 32, who were recently buried at the Kingtom cemetery, to the clutches of the illegal and addictive drug known as “KUSH”, we find ourselves at the crossroads of another emergency public health scare. The mass burial at the Kington cemetery in Freetown is not just a solemn occasion for mourning but a stark reality and a wake-up call to the pervasive crisis that threatens the very fabric of our society.
Public outcry and testimonies have shed light on a grim reality: the use of KUSH and other illegal substances has burgeoned into a significant social issue, with roots entangled in the highest levels of our political, economic, law enforcement, and social institutions. The existence of manufacturing, trafficking, and distribution hubs especially within Freetown, points to a crisis that is not only becoming widespread in the country but is now deeply entrenched within our very impoverished urban community arteries, just as it happened in the case of EBOLA.
Fellow Sierra Leoneans, the time for action is now. The role of national leaders in protecting all citizens and, in particular, ensuring the welfare of the youth cannot be overstated. Unemployment, social neglect, and the rising cost of living, in all their dimensions, leading to deepening poverty and hunger, despair, and loss of hope, especially concerning the users, cannot be ignored as defining factors.
At the same time, our complementary roles, united endeavors, and actions as citizens and community stakeholders to protect our youth against this murderous KUSH cannot be overstated. As responsible citizens, parents, guardians, youth leaders, friends, colleagues, and neighbors, we must honestly and seriously commit to recognizing the gravity of this situation and take decisive action.
In the spirit of saving Sierra Leone, it is incumbent upon us to target, condemn, and castigate those greatly responsible for this drug crisis that has engulfed our youth, the pride of our future. The onus is upon each one of us – political leadership, experts in drug rehabilitation, youth representatives, community leaders, and law enforcement agencies to investigate the depth and breadth of the drug crisis, identify the networks and individuals involved in the production, distribution, and sale of illegal drugs like KUSH. It is now time for us to commit to eradicating the drug menace in the country.
We cannot pretend that we are unaware or unaffected, directly or indirectly, by the lethal effects of these killer drugs within our communities. There is no doubt that those currently addicted to these drugs require urgent dedicated attention and rehabilitation services and support. Our parliamentarians have asked, and rightly so, for a declaration of a public emergency or some such. Frankly speaking, the issue is not so much about the users but more so about identifying and bringing to book the agents that provide these substances, knowing fully that the core active ingredients are imported, legally or illegally.
This is a call to unity, beyond political affiliations and personal interests, for the sake of our nation’s health and prosperity. The challenges we face are formidable, but not insurmountable. Together, we can turn the tide against this crisis, safeguarding our youth and ensuring a vibrant, healthy future for Sierra Leone.
Let us honor the memory of those we have lost by committing ourselves to action. Let this moment be a turning point, where we stand united in our resolve to heal our nation and pledge to build a safer, brighter future for all.
Let us rise above the fray, set aside our differences, and come together for the common good. Our nation’s future, the well-being of our children, depends on it. Let us avoid igniting another stigma upon our country, after Blood Diamonds and Ebola.
If this drug menace is and/or may be spreading to our neighboring countries, then, it is advisable that for a start, we make it an active item on the Agenda of the Mano River Union.
𝑰𝒏 𝒔𝒆𝒓𝒗𝒊𝒄𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒏𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏, 𝒍𝒆𝒕 𝒖𝒔 𝒔𝒂𝒚 𝑵𝑶 𝑻𝑶 𝑲𝑼𝑺𝑯 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝑨𝑫𝑫𝑰𝑪𝑻𝑰𝑽𝑬 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑫𝒂𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒔 𝑫𝑹𝑼𝑮𝑺.
𝑮𝒐𝒅 𝑩𝒍𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝑺𝒊𝒆𝒓𝒓𝒂 𝑳𝒆𝒐𝒏𝒆! 𝑳𝒐𝒏𝒈 𝑳𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑨𝑷𝑪!
𝑫𝒓 𝑺𝒂𝒎𝒖𝒓𝒂 𝑴 𝑾 𝑲𝒂𝒎𝒂𝒓𝒂