The Junkies Of Kano 
Published on July 26, 2010 by TheNEWS · No Comments
It is unbelievable the extent to which some people can go just to get high. We knew about some unpopular strange ways of getting high like sniffing glue and others, but smoking lizard excreta is almost unbelievable. (‘The Junkies Of Kano – Despite Sharia, Drug Addiction Spreads,’ TheNEWS, 19 July 2010 ecition).
Kayode Adefila,
Otta.
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, should intensify efforts at arresting drug peddlers in order to discourage use of drugs and addiction among the youth or at least minimise the availability of hard drugs. Aside this, government needs to sensitise the people to know the damage the use of hard drugs can cause to their body.
Bisi Adeolu,
Ilorin.
The prevalent use of hard drugs in Kano State points to the fact that the Sharia that is being proclaimed and enforced in that part of the country is not having the expected effect on the people. It might pay off if the government takes another look at the ban on alcoholic drinks which people generally take to relax. Its ban is fast proving to be counter-productive.
Taiye Ilori,
Surulere, Lagos.
In a place where alcohol is not easy to come by and people still want to get high once in a while, such people will always find a way to get one thing or another that will make them high. As always, desperate people will go all out to try new things. It is in situations like the one provided by the imposition of Sharia laws in the northern part of the country that new discoveries are made. I am therefore not surprised that some people have resorted to smoking lizard excreta. No matter what our law enforcement agencies do, people who need to get high will continue to look for alternatives when the hard drugs they are used to are not available.
Patience Peter,
Warri.
The rate at which drug abuse is spreading in Kano State despite the existence of Sharia is quite amazing. The Kano State government needs to arrest the situation to complement the very good efforts of the NDLEA officials.
Victor Nwankwo,
Enugu.
If the activities of the junkies in Kano as revealed by your cover story are not controlled, in no distant future the youths in neighbouring states are bound to start emulating the Kano miscreants, a situation that is bound to endanger the future of the youths in the area. This should not be allowed to happen.
Gbenga Akinsanmin,
Ibadan.
Your cover story, Junkies of Kano, has really revealed the level of recklessness of our youths and the inadequacies of our law enforcement agencies to curb crime and other vices in the society. Naturally, people are bound to blame these agencies. But why blame them? How prepared are they to adequately police the society? The Federal Government should equip NDLEA officials better so that its members can carry out their obligations effectively.
Charles Osita,
Aba.
I cannot but commend you for your cover story entitled Junkies of Kano. During a recent trip to Kano I witnessed several examples that lent credence to your story. Those junkies need help if they must overcome their bad habits. These guys can smoke or sniff anything. The expose is timely.
Alajo Williams,
Abeokuta.
The truth is that Sharia and other laws cannot stop some damning things that people do openly or in secret. One is only guilty when the person is caught. There are so many things going on at the same time out there—child abuse, indiscriminate use of drugs, discrimination against other tribes, etc. Come to think of it, drinking and chain smoking are very rampant among the people of the North.
Ajoke Ayodele,
Lagos.
Why the hue and cry about junkies in Kano as if the situation is limited to the state alone. This act cuts across the entire country, although it is prevalent in the northern part of the country and Lagos State. Kano citizens may be the biggest patrons of hard drugs such as Roka, Hankofa, Pamolin and others, but it is a northern issue. Illicit drugs cannot be curbed by Sharia law or any other law without the people involved helping themselves.
Adesola Makanjuola,
Akure.
I refuse to believe that you guys were not paid to publish that scathing attack on Kano State and her people. My cut is that the picture you guys used to portray your story was taken right there in Lagos, within the premises of Africa Shrine. You should have titled the story: “Illicit drugs in Nigeria.” After all, people use hard drugs in all parts of the country—North, South, East and West.
Ahmed Bashisu,
Kano.
Drug addiction is not new. While some people like to drink and they will drink anything that can make them high, some like to smoke and they too will go to any length to get and smoke anything that can make them get high. In the North, we like to smoke but it’s not as rabid as your magazine depicted it. Well, depending on who reads the story, I think this is good for the northern states as it will help them check the excesses of their youths; that is, if they choose to act.
Suleiman Abubakar,
New York.
I see your cover story titled Junkies of Kano as a political attack on Shekarau, Kano State people and All Nigeria Peoples Party, ANPP. Though some of what you reported are true, my stand is that we also have people doing these things in other parts of the country and the world.
Mohammed Shamsudeen,
Kaduna.
Your cover story on the use of drugs in Kano city is refreshingly revealing. It is a departure from the usual politics-inspired publications, which your magazine is noted for. I want to implore you to do more of such well researched stories. The impact stories like that will have on people cannot be quantified. Kudos to your magazine.
Musban Ishaya,
Owerri.
I commend you guys for exposing the ills bedevilling Kano. It is an age-long problem which has defied solution so far. There is hardly a household in Kano that is spared of this demeaning act. Even children of some prominent personalities in the state are known to indulge in this habit. Sadly, the government has chosen to turn a blind eye to the menance ravaging the people. May God save us.
Fatima Ahmed,
Benin-City.
Your cover story on the drug addicts in Kano was a great one. I never knew Kano State had a high number of hard drug users and drug dens like Lagos. The Kano State government had better checked the growing trend.
Yemi Adewale,
Ede.
I find your cover story on the drug users in Kano informative. I got to know for the first time that Kano State has the highest consumers of illicit drugs in the country. The story was a true work of investigation.
Femi Oluwasanmi,
Osogbo.
That Kano has a lot of drug addicts should be expected being the commercial capital of the North. However, I doubt whether the drug users in Kano are more than those in Lagos. We all know that everyday and everywhere, we are faced with the hash realities of drug users in Lagos, many of whom are called area boys.
Popoola Sadiq,
Lagos.
The NDLEA in Kano must double its efforts in order to eliminate drug abuse or reduce it to the barest minimum. The state government on its part should do all it can to either establish its own agency to track down hard drug users and offenders so that it can change Kano’s notoriety as the capital of illicit drugs in the country.
Ahmed Moshood,
Abeokuta.
Not many people are stunned by the fact that drug addiction has spread in the ancient commercial city of Kano. For a city that boasts of a population in excess of 10 million, all kinds of social vices should be expected. Drug addiction and other vices like armed robbery and prostitution vary according to population. In fact, were it not for the Sharia in place, the situation would have been worse. To a great extent, Sharia has helped to reduce the prevalence of drug abuse and addiction in Kano City.
Yahaya Ahmed,
Kano.
Now that drug addiction has taken centre stage in Kano, Governor Ibrahim Shekarau will have his hands full if he is minded to reduce the menace to its barest minimum. Failure to address this problem could affect his presidential ambition. It is now left for him to work in harmony with the state Commissioner of Police and Haruna Kwetishe, the state Commander of NDLEA, to find a lasting solution to the problem.
Isiaka Aminu,
Katsina.
Drug addiction is not new in the North, especially in states like Kano. But it has became a social problem because more youths now seek solace in it. The only way to stop this trend is for government to provide social amenities and jobs for the youths.
Niran Adeyemi,
Lagos.
Most of the youths who are addicted to drugs are from affluent homes. The only way this trend can be checked is for the law enforcement agents to start focussing attention on affluent people in our society.
Efe Omonode,
Benin.
The reason there are so many drug addicts in Kano, to me, is because most of the youths are jobless and have too much idle time to while away. If drug addiction is to be checked, government should try and ascertain why it is prevalent. Until this is done, we can’t get to the root of the problem.
Emeka Okafor,
Enugu.
It is preposterous to hear that there are so many drug addicts in Kano despite the overbearing presence of Sharia law. That shows that there is so much hypocrisy in the North. I think the Kano State government should do something about this deplorable condition.
Umaru Musa,
Kano.
It is sad that so many youths are addicted to drugs in the North. This is a sad commentary on the failure of governance in our country. Government has to do something to stop this scourge before it snowballs into something that will be impossible to manage.
Femi Olowu,
Ibadan.
Many youths indulge in drugs because of the breakdown of family values. Rather than blame religion or government, I believe parents should be held responsible for this untoward trend.
Musa Mohammed,
Kano
Re: Ojukwu’s Coup
To describe the political situation in Abia State as “the Ojukwu Coup’ is an over-statement. I think Odumegwu Ojukwu’s involvement can better be described as a rescue mission. Ojukwu is an important figure in Nigeria generally and the South-East geo-political zone specifically. It would be unreasonable of him to watch such awry proceedings without intervening. His intervention is good enough to stem the political imbroglio in People’s Progressive Alliance, PPA. We won’t be surprised if APGA clinches Abia State in 2011 because of the Ojukwu factor.
Njoku Nwafor,
Orlu.