By Janet A. Sesay
The Inspector General of Police, William Fayia Sellu, has stated that kush dealers are now being charged to court under the new National Drug Control Act of 2008, and this new drug act implies that no bail should be granted by magistrates when they are charged to court.
IGP Sellu made this statement during kush campaign meeting involving community stakeholders at the Queen Elizabeth Car Park at Cline Town in Freetown.
This event was held under the theme: “Kush Game, We Go Don Am”.
In his keynote address, IGP Sellu said he is happy when people are gathered to raise awareness and red flags on the effects of kush and other harmful substances like tramadol, cannabis sativa, grafinol and other substances that make people hype.
He said as for now the kush fight is at the forefront, adding that the kush problem is not only in Sierra Leone but all around the world.
IGP Sellu furthered that in some countries the youth can be seen lying on the streets after taking kush, but said the good thing about Sierra Leone is that the government has taken concrete actions to address and eliminate kush.
Mr. Sellu continued that the first step taken by the government is the preparation of a Health Emergency Centre and the setting up of a Task Force which has five pillars.
He said the first pillar of the task force is the psychosocial aspect which involves counselling, where they gather people involved in taking kush, take them to the rehab centre at Hastings and counsel them about the effects of kush.
The second pillar is sensitisation, adding that lots of activities have been going on across the country by the Army Wives Corporative and the Sierra Leone Police Wives Association as they went across the country sensitising the youth about the effects of kush.
He said kush is damaging the country’s population, adding that the youth who should take control of the country in the future are involved in smoking kush.
Mr. Sellu continued that the third pillar is security where the military and police are involved, adding that they have arrested nine hundred people across the country involved in selling kush.
He said the fourth pillar is law enforcement which is the legal pillar involving the court system, adding that before this time there were two sets of laws about drugs; the Pharmacy Act of 2001 and the National Drug Control Act of 2008, which was enacted by the government in 2008.
He added that the National Drug Control Act was enacted because in 2008 there was a plane that landed in the country carrying cocaine on board.
He said this particular act is very powerful, adding that if a person is being charged under this act no bail will be granted by the magistrate in court.
IGP Sellu furthered that if bail is granted by the magistrate under the act he or she will be playing with his or her job, adding that he has told the magistrates that they are charging people under the National Drug Control Act and so no bail should be given. After trial at magistrate court the person will be sent to the High Court.
He continued that the biggest drug dealer who was arrested at Allentown has spent eight to nine months behind bars, adding that he has spent money for bail but to no avail.
He said at Makeni the Regional Commander and the police have suppressed kush dealers who decided run into the society bush to take kush, where they found twelve people dead after taking kush.
He said they will let the government pathologist do a post mortem examination on them to know the exact cause of death. He said the good thing is that eight people have presently been arrested on this issue.
The IGP continued that the fifth pillar is the health system, adding that this is the area where nurses attend to those who have sores on their feet.
IGP Sellu furthered that the effects of kush in the body is that when a person smokes it, the smoke enters the person’s blood stream and increases the blood density. The blood flows down to the feet without being able to come back up again.
He continued that the feet will be swollen and when the blood is plenty at the base of the foot it bursts out and there will be sores that will not heal.
He continued that a lot of such cases about kush are all over our society and creating the rehab centre is a very big effort made by the government that has not been done in other countries. IGP Sellu furthered that both civilians and police should work together to fight kush.
He said it is very painful to see the youth in kush taking, adding that the new law that has been enacted is strong and if a kush seller is a tenant and is arrested, the house owner will also be arrested and charged with the offence of conspiracy.
IGP Sellu furthered that everyone should become united and help in this fight, adding that in Kambia district kush has damaged a lot of people.
He said, ‘Kush has eaten into our lower fabric and if we are not careful the country will lose the youth to kush’, adding that everyone should help in this fight just as Ebola was fought by everyone.
He said the fact that everyone is involved in this fight clearly indicates that we will succeed as a nation to eradicate kush. The police IG said the police also has forty-seven rules concerning kush, but that they have also fallen short of the law.
He said if they arrested a civilian twice with drugs, they consider it a small matter, but went on that the police has a zero policy toward drugs and if a police officer is caught once with kush he or she will be dismissed immediately and charged to court.
Mr. Sellu said a lot of police officers have been dismissed from the force once they were found with the drug as it is against their policy. Chief Superintendent of Police Emmanuel Kpulum, Local Unit Commander, Harbour Division, in his welcome address said the Harbour Division has been in the fight against kush for a long time, adding that they are going to continue until kush is eradicated from the country.
CSP Kpulum said the Sierra Leone Police Harbour Division and the Local Police Partnership Board in collaboration with various community stakeholders should come together to fight kush.
The Managing Director of SONOCO Company, Mark Richard, in his statement said kush is not a game neither a joke as it destroys communities, people and the society we live in. He said everyone has the responsibility to educate the youth about the effects of kush.
Yutes Rogers, the Technical Services Officer at the Sierra Leone Ports and Harbour Authority, in his statement said he is in charge of health and safety in the environmental department, adding that his concern is the health and safety aspect in the sensitisation pillar. He said the effects of kush is also being felt down at Water Quay.
Yutes added that they have people who arrive at the quay holding very expressive properties involved in kush taking. He said the properties include trucks, machines, and other vehicles.
He pleaded that everybody should join hands together to end kush.
Dr. Francis Kalawa said that kush is dangerous, adding that kush is something that is made locally by adding formalin, tramadol, vitamin and mash mellow.
He said kush is easy to get as it is made by our own brothers in the same community which they sell to others. He said kush from a medical background affects all systems of the body, adding that the three major systems it affects are the brain, heart and blood vessels.
He said after taking kush the brain will lead the person to think abnormally, or to instant death.
He said kush will affect the heart that will lead to sudden cardiac death, adding that the person will also have sores that will not heal, leading to the person dying from overwhelming infections.
The Director of Operations, Assistant Commissioner of Police, Dr John Martin Senessie, in his statement said they are begging the community people as servant leaders to support the police to fight this enemy called kush.
He added that community people teamed up with the police to fight Ebola, COVID-19, and so they don’t have any doubt in the community people.
He furthered that kush has destroyed a lot of young people in the police, security sector, education field and all walks of life, adding that today some police officers are in jail because of kush.
Senessie continued that they will not only depend on raiding, arresting and charging people to court but they will continue to engage the communities to let them know about the effects of kush.
The Director of Gender and Community Affairs in his statement said the police cannot fight crime alone except working with the people in the community, adding that working with community people will make them succeed in fighting crime in the country.
He said kush is a very big problem in the country and if they did not work with community people it will not be solved.
Jackling Mariama Malik, a Student Union President from UNIMTECH, thanked the police for the policy of sensitising the youth about the effects of kush. She said kush is a hazard that is destroying lives and it is a very dreadful disease.
She pleaded with everyone to come together to eradicate kush from the country, adding that we should try and let kush become a thing of the past.
Mr. Byania, representing the principals in the country, thanked the police in taking the fight against kush to schools, adding that he has also been in the centre of this fight helping the police by attending several meetings sensitising the youth about the effects of kush.
He said they as principals are dealing with the youth, adding that parents ought to monitor their children. When they are in school the teachers are training their minds to become important individuals in the society.
He said schools are not training children to have bad minds, adding: ‘We will not give up so that we will not have a failed nation.’
Councillor Tejan Jalloh in his statement said the problem about kush is implementation, adding that stakeholders need finance and rehab centres to house victims and talk to them about the effects of kush.
He said without money they will not be able to hold a person in one place to counsel him or her.
He said the Port Authority has been doing well for the community, disclosing that they now have small lapses. The Councillor said the community has lots of challenges like water and poor road facilities, adding that the community is going through a lot of constraints.
Regional Commander, Assistant Commissioner of Police Francis Mendy, in his statement said in the Harbour Division they have five divisions, adding that they are holding the third meeting in the region on kush sensitisation.
ACP Francis Mendy furthered that the first meeting was held at the Kissy Police Station; last week it was held at the Eastern Police Station. ‘This one is being held at the Harbour Division.’
Mr. Mendy continued that everyone should come together to ensure that kush becomes a thing of the past, adding that the reason why they invited stakeholders is because the police cannot fight this fight alone. They need collaboration and cooperation with community people to ensure success in the fight.
Other important stakeholders also made important statements and said that everyone should be on board to drive kush from the country.