{"id":56881,"date":"2024-11-24T19:16:26","date_gmt":"2024-11-24T19:16:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/?p=56881"},"modified":"2024-11-24T22:51:06","modified_gmt":"2024-11-24T22:51:06","slug":"prioritize-anti-drug-fight-obj-charges-leaders","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/2024\/11\/24\/prioritize-anti-drug-fight-obj-charges-leaders\/","title":{"rendered":"OBJ Reflects on Personal Battle with Smoking"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><em><strong>By Faith Adama<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<p>Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has drew from a personal experience to emphasize the dangers of substance use, even as he urged leaders across Nigeria and West Africa to intensify efforts in combating drug abuse.<\/p>\n<p>Speaking at the \u2018Fly Above The High\u2019 anti-drug conference in Abeokuta, Obasanjo described drug abuse as a growing crisis that threatens the region&#8217;s future.<\/p>\n<p>Recounting his youthful encounter with smoking, the elder statesman shared how a violent coughing fit stopped him from continuing.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf I had persisted, I might have become addicted. Once you&#8217;re hooked, it\u2019s hard to break free,\u201d he said, addressing an audience of students, mental health professionals, and policymakers.<\/p>\n<p>Obasanjo, who once chaired the West African Drug Commission, expressed deep concern over West Africa&#8217;s transformation from a drug transit hub to a significant consumer of psychoactive substances.<\/p>\n<p>He called for a collaborative regional strategy, emphasizing that the drug menace transcends borders. \u201cThis is not just Nigeria\u2019s problem; it\u2019s a West African and African crisis,\u201d he warned.<\/p>\n<p>He also stressed the importance of leadership in addressing the epidemic, urging policymakers to strengthen legislation, reduce access to illicit drugs, and champion education to prevent abuse.<\/p>\n<p>Dr. Kunle Adesina and Dr. Samuel Abah, who also spoke at the event, echoed Obasanjo\u2019s call for robust legislative frameworks and grassroots awareness campaigns to tackle drug abuse at its roots.<\/p>\n<p>Obasanjo ended his address on a hopeful note, assuring those struggling with addiction that support is available.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDrugs bring destruction, but there is always hope for those who choose to break free,\u201d he said, inspiring attendees to take action against the scourge of drug abuse.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Faith Adama Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has drew from a personal experience to emphasize the dangers of substance use, even as he urged leaders across Nigeria and West Africa to intensify efforts in combating drug abuse. Speaking at the \u2018Fly Above The High\u2019 anti-drug conference in Abeokuta, Obasanjo described drug abuse as a growing [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":29,"featured_media":56882,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[172],"tags":[59],"class_list":["post-56881","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-featured"],"aioseo_notices":[],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56881","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/29"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=56881"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56881\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":56886,"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56881\/revisions\/56886"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/56882"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=56881"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=56881"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=56881"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}