National Emergency Declared In Sierra Leone; Reason-Drugs Addicts Digging Graves For Human Bones

The President of Sierra Leone, a country located in West Africa, has declared a national emergency. The reason for this is very surprising. People are digging graves indiscriminately. It is being told that a dangerous intoxicating drug is being prepared from human bones. This drug called Kush, which has been making people addicted for the last several years, is a psychoactive mixture of addictive substances. Now it has become very necessary to control it and due to this, emergency has been declared in the country. In this regard, President Julius Maada Bio has said that this has created an existential crisis.

According to a BBC report, in Sierra Leone it is common to see people sitting on the roadside whose organs have swollen due to excessive consumption of this drug. A person addicted to it said that I do not like it but I am not able to leave it. A doctor said that hundreds of youth have died in the capital Freetown in the last few months. Due to excessive drug consumption, his organs had stopped functioning due to which he lost his life. Doctors say that along with the side effects on the body, this drug also has a very bad effect on the mental health of the person. One of the materials used in making this drug is human bones. People addicted to it have been seen digging graves. To stop this, security arrangements have been tightened in cemeteries.

Sierra Leone President Julius Maada Bio, has declared a national emergency on substance abuse, following calls on his government to crack down on the rising use of a cheap and a lethal synthetic drug known as kush. pic.twitter.com/mlSgFvKMge

— CGTN Africa (@cgtnafrica) April 6, 2024

Number of people admitted in Hospital increased 4000 percent

The Sierra Leone Psychiatric Hospital says that between 2020 and 2023, the number of people admitted due to the drug Kush has increased by 4000 percent. Let us tell you that this is the only hospital of this kind in the country. In view of the increase in its use, those operating the cemeteries of Freetown have demanded increased security. President Bio said in an address on Thursday night that our country is facing an existential crisis due to this drug.

Instructions to form a task force to deal with the crisis

Declaring a national emergency, the President said that instructions have been given to form a National Task Force to prevent its abuse. This task force will mainly focus on dealing with the Kush crisis. Centers will be set up in every district in which trained professionals will provide help to the people addicted to it. Let us tell you that at present Freetown is the only city in this country where a drug rehabilitation center is working. It was built this year in an army training center.