Centre turns drug addicts, mentally challenged persons into entrepreneurs
Some people are able to use recreational or prescription drugs without experiencing negative consequences or addiction. For others, however, substance use can cause problems at work, home, school, and in relationships, leaving them feeling isolated, helpless, or ashamed which could eventually lead to mental health problems.
Our co rrespondent visi ted t he Malam Nigga rehabilitation centre in Rigasa, K aduna S outh L ocal Government Ar ea, w here dr ug addicts a nd men tally ill p eople are r ehabilitated a nd t urned in to entrepreneurs.
The Wikipedia free encyclopedia, describes dr ug addic tion, as a compulsive need t o us e dr ugs in order to function normally. When such substances are unobtainable, the user suffers from withdrawal.
Mohammad Ahmad is o ne of the youths undergoing rehabilitation at the cen tre, f ighting addic tion to drugs. He was is olated from his family and friends due to his drug problem before he was b rought to the centre. But with help from Malam Nigga, Mohammed says he has been given a second chance in life to make something f or him self in stead o f leaving a wasted life.
“I was seriously on drugs before my family brought me to this centre. I found myself in drugs due to the influence of peers, but since I was brought here I became better with his help and I hope with the help I have received I will be able to help others just like Malam has helped me,” he said .
A sked on the kind of drugs given to them by Malam, the young man said, “we a re gi ven s ome kinds of traditional medicine a nd I ca n proudly say that the medicine works like wonder because by the time your body is used to it, you will not want to take drugs again,” he said.
Another inma te at the cen tre, Ibrahim Ahmad, from Plateau State said his fa mily brought him t o the centre after he developed a mental problem due to drug abuse adding that “I am feeling better now, unlike when I was brought to the centre and I have been taught a trade so that I can fend for myself when I leave the centre.”
“I now sell second-hand clothe because t hat is w hat I wa nt t o do. I le arnt t he b usiness at this rehabilitation cen tre a fter I was cured of my illness and my business is moving well. I hope as time goes on and I heal completely, I will be able to get a shop where I can expand my business and even train others in the trade,” he enthused.
Ibrahim called o n other youths to st ay a way f rom dr ugs s aying, “drug use is very dangerous and can destroy your lives like it almost did to me if not for the help of my family that brought me t o Malam Nigga’s rehabilitation centre.”
On his part, Malam Lawal Yusuf Badaru a.k.a (Malam Nigga) sa id “today is a day set aside by the United Nations t o celeb rate p eople wi th mental problems. It is a day set aside to analyze the reasons why youths engage in dr ug abuse and how to address the problem. We discovered that some of the reasons our youths engage in dr ugs have to do with f rustrations and idleness.
“Some of them a re being p ushed by peers either in s chool or in t he communities t hey li ved. So far in my centre I have about 1,300 men tally affected yout hs who are undergoing rehabilitation treatment.
“Due to their illnesses some of them can commit murder wi thout e ven knowing it. We are doing our b est to r ehabilitate them back to the s ociety. People exp eriment wi th drugs for many different reasons. First, it begins with curiosity, t o ha ve a g ood time, because f riends are doing it, or in a n effort to improve athletic performance or ease other problems, such as stress, anxiety or depression. Use do esn’t a utomatically lead t o abuse, and there is no specific level at which drug use moves from casual to problematic. It varies by individual. Drug abuse and addiction is less about the amount of substance consumed or the frequency, and more to do with the consequences of drug use.
“There are lot of dangers associated with drugs because we have cases of some of these youths who were under t he inf luence of dangerous drugs killing their relations or parents without even knowing what they did.
“At the cen tre, we t each thes e youth’s different skills s o that after their rehabilitation, they can f it in better into society. Most times we give them the c hance to cho ose their skills. F or the ad ults a nd school dropouts, we have teachers that teach them. The skills we teach them include computer training, carpentry, sho e makers, ta ilors, barbing, among others, and for the women, we train them on tailoring, weaving, soap making etc.
“NGOs are not helping us either but t he st ate g overnment s ent us some bags of rice to feed the youths. As we know it is not easy for a single individual to take care or feed such a number of people so I am making an appeal to wellmeaning individuals to come to the aid of the centre so that it can be sustained,” he said.
Th e National Ch airman o f Peace Revival and Reconciliation Foundation of N igeria, P astor Yuhana Duru, commended Malam Nigga f or his s elfless s ervice t o humanity s aying t hat, “what Malam Badaru is doing to these youths is commendable, he has a vision to help them most especially those with mental illness.”
“As a peace ambassador, to visit this centre and see both Muslim and Christian youths undergoing mental rehabilitation in the heart of Rigasa being taken care of by a Muslim is really commendable,” he said.
He urged government and t he Nigerian populace to join hands with Malam Badaru to fight the scourge of drug abuse and mental illness in Nigeria.