Reps concerned 'Mkpuru Mmiri' drug addiction is destroying youths in southeast

Members of the House of Representatives during plenary on Thursday, November 25, 2021, voted for a crackdown on rising drug addiction across Nigeria.

Rep. Henry Nwawuba moved a motion raising his concern about the recent prevalence of methamphetamine in the southeast region.

Known locally as mkpuru mmiri, the distribution of the recreational drug has raised eyebrows, with many youths getting addicted.

Nwawuba noted that the drug has negative effects on users and is a growing threat to youths and the future of Nigeria.

"There are laws in this country to control drug abuse and trafficking. Regulatory agencies, and particularly the NDLEA, should step up their control and sensitisation mechanisms," the Imo lawmaker cautioned.

Deputy House Minority Leader, Rep. Toby Okechukwu, also noted that the drug addiction issue is a nationwide problem that should be effectively contained.

And Rep. Abdulrazak Namdas said there's a link between drug abuse and the insecurity affecting many parts of the country.

"There has to be a synergy among all the security agencies to jointly attack the problem," he said.

Members of the House, in a unanimous vote, passed a motion calling for a Marshall plan to fight drug abuse across the country.

They also called for a crackdown on local manufacturing plants, and increasing the budget of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) to function more efficiently.

The NDLEA announced this week its agents have intercepted and seized more than three million kilograms of hard drugs in the past 10 months.