The Ondo State Commissioner for Youth and Sports Development, Otumba Dele Ologun, has condemned the increasing rate of drug abuse, cultism, and other criminal activities in the state.
Ologun, on Monday in Akure, said the high rate of anti-social activities such as drug abuse and cultism in the state had become worrisome.
The commissioner referred to the latest happening in the state in which a student died at Agolo High School, Ikare Akoko, during the inter-house sports competition of the school.
He urged the police and the National Drugs and Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) to strengthen their efforts at curbing the danger of social vices in the state.
He said, “Our institutions are places of learning, and sporting activities should not be used as a tool to perpetrate violence in the state.
“There is the need for all security and law enforcement agencies in the state to ensure that there is a drastic reduction of anti-social activities amongst students in the state.”
Cultism in Ondo
About six people were killed in the Okitipupa community, headquarters of Okitipupa Local Government Area of Ondo State in December 2021.
Similarly, in July 2021, three persons were also shot dead by gunmen in a vengeance attack by rival cult groups in Ondo town, the headquarters of Ondo West Local Government Area of Ondo State.
Disturbing Data on Drug Abuse
The 2018 National Drug Use Survey, a joint research by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) and the Centre for Research and Information on Substance Abuse (CRISA) with technical support from the UNODC, was launched.
The survey gives a scary account of rising drug use in Nigeria, reporting that as of the time of the research, 14.3 million Nigerians aged between 15 and 64 years engaged in drug use.
Of this figure, the survey added that about three million were drug dependent and suffering from substance-induced disorders.
According to the data, the prevalence of drug use in Nigeria on a geopolitical zonal basis reveals that the South-west tops the chart with about 4.382 million users amounting to 22.4 percent of Nigeria’s total figure of 14.3 million users. The South-west comprises Lagos, Ogun, Oyo, Osun, Ondo, and Ekiti states.