Nigerians Urged To Imbibe Culture Of Tolerance-Speaker Bauchi State

Yakubu Busari

The Speaker Bauchi State House Rt. Hon Shehu AKawu Damina has reiterated the need for Nigerians to imbibe the spirit of peaceful coexistence and show of love and unity of oneness and purpose.

He said Nigeria should return back to the culture of tolerance and forgiveness adding that within his four years as Speaker of Bauchi Assembly has committed to seeing a peaceful country, where nobody will be discriminated on the ground of his or her tribe or religion.

He stated this during the Afizere Community Association ( ACCD) celebration held at Lamigo Multipurpose hall, Jos North Local Government Area of Plateau state, with the Theme, “Development & sustainable a strong culture “,

A Paper Presenter on managing drug amongst the Izere Youths, Mr. Samuel Magaji Azi said he regrets that some youths are exposed to the use dangerous substances which destroy the future of their children.

According to him, It has also exposed him to the challenges faced by drug-dependent persons towards successful recovery, especially as it affects their education. He added that within the last decade the involvement of youths in drug abuse has taken a wide and frightening dimension.

He explained further that the adolescents and young adults of both sexes between the ages of l3 and 30 years constitute the high-risk group for drug abuse. Available statistics show that more than 70% of drug abusers in Nigeria are youths.

Statistics also show that youth start engaging in drug abuse even as early as the age of ten (IO) this is highly regrettable as Nigerian youths are exposed to the dangers of inherent in drug abuse with women ‘ getting more involved in their formative years.

Azi stresses that this is how bad the situation is, hence the need to understand the effect this phenomenon has on our community. Before going into the effects of drug and substance abuse, let us understand some basic concepts

Drug: Drugs are any substance, other than food, which when taken into the body affects the structure and function of a living organism. It, therefore, means that any substance either in its natural or synthetic form, when taken or absorbed into the body, brings about a change in the way the mind or body function is a drug.

Drugs can be used to prevent, cure and alleviate diseases. They can also be used to relieve pain, induce sleep, relieve tension and stress and to correct in balance in the body

Speaking on  Illicit or illegal drugs, he said they are substances whose manufacturing, sales, distribution, purchase, use or possession is prohibited by law. They are also called hard drugs e.g. cannabis, cocaine, heroin. pemoline, amphetamines etc.

Classification of drugs

Drugs are classified into a variety of ways based on

i. The system or organ of the body in which they act upon

ii. The pharmacological or therapeutic properties.

iii. The national drug laws or international convention on them.

iv. The chemical structure of the drug.

v. The effect of the drug on the body.

For the purpose of this presentation, however, we shall classify them according to their effects on the body. and these categories are narcotics. Stimulants, depressants,  hallucinogens.