Capital to get rehabilitation centre for drug addicts

Minister for Narcotics Control Ijaz Ahmed Shah said on Wednesday that the government would open one more centre in the federal capital for the rehabilitation of drug addicts.

Addressing a drug-burning ceremony organised by the Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF), he said “We are fighting to eliminate the drug menace from the country effectively but there are only three drug rehabilitation centres in the country which are highly insufficient to treat the patients.”

The minister asked the private sector having enough resources to come forward and play their role in establishing such facilities in the country so that timely treatment and rehabilitation of the treatment could be carried out efficiently.

“The government alone could not deal with the problem as there were six million drug addicts in the country as per the year 2012-report,” he said adding federal and provincial departments and masses would have to make joint efforts to purge the menace of drugs from society.

He asked the masses, especially the youth, to join hands with the government to eliminate drugs from society and ensure the safety of future generations. The minister also called for cutting the drug supply line besides taking measures to choke the demand for drugs with a special focus on raising awareness and rehabilitation of drug addicts in society.

“We are not the drug-producing state, but a victim of drugs,” the minister said, appealing to the young generation to wage a war against drugs and work together to make Pakistan a drug-free state.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 25^th, 2021.