The National Drugs Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) on Sunday took its campaign to end the spread of drug abuse across Nigeria to the Church of the Assumption Asokoro in Abuja, where it raised concerns about the high rate of substance abuse especially among young persons.
Officials of the agency were at the 10:00 am Mass and addressed the attentive and excited members of the congregation on the damage done to the society and families as a result of the abuse various drug related substances.
The officials who were invited by the Parish Priest, Reverend Father Stephen Omale advised parents to pay closer attention to the behaviours of their children as prevention against substance abuse remained the better option.
“It is better and cheaper to prevent than to treat. Treatment is very costly and abused persons can be difficult to reverse,” one of the officials said.
They also identified several psychological effects of substance abuse to include depression, aggression, psychotic disorder, and other consequences.
“We help people to recover from drug abuse disorder,” one of the medical officials on the team informed the congregation,” they said.
Reverend Father Omale in his remarks enjoined the worshipers to make contact with the NDLEA team, in an approach that could assist in addressing substance abuse within the Catholic community.