Posted by By Bekai Njie
More than half a ton of cannabis sativa has been seized in the West Coast Region (WCR) alone, according Director of Operations at the Drug Law Enforcement Agency-The Gambia (DLEAG), Alhagie Ebrima Drammeh.
“These drugs were destined for supply to our families and relative and any of our families could be a victim. We must therefore cooperate and partner in addressing this ills before it aggravate to a level where it will consume us all,” he warned.
Drammeh was speaking during a day-long sensitisation forum for regional authorities in WCR at the Governor’s Office.
The forum was not aimed at sanitising regional authorities among other things.
Commissioner Drammeh said that WCR continues to be highly vulnerable especially to the trafficking of cannabis.
“The region account for the bulk of cannabis seized annually by the agency,” he said. This, we all known is a result of many contributing factors like the porosity of our borders and proximity of the region to the southern Senegalese region of Casamance.”
The cultivation of cannabis sativa, Drammeh said, affects agricultural initiatives of food self-sufficiency. This, he added, is because some farmers or youths are tempted to cultivate cannabis instead of other food or cash crops to get fast money.
Commissioner Drammeh further explained that illicit drug abuse and trafficking continue to pose serious threat to national development, socio-cultural and religious lifestyles and values. This is because the primary victims and majority of those affected by this menace are the youths who are the future leaders and the creams of our societies.