The Chairman of the Codeine Control and Other Related Matters Working Group (CCRWG), Prof. Oluwatoyin Odeku, has raised the alarm over the widespread abuse of codeine and other controlled medicines in many parts of the country.
According to report Odeku, noted that the abuse of the substance cut across all ages and social strata.
“The problem is going deeper into the society by the day. There are reports of drug abuse among secondary school pupils and students in tertiary institutions. The use of codeine containing cough syrup has increased even among married women," She lamented.
Odeku added that the development is as a result of users including married women seeking respite in the drug in order to deal with their daily life struggles.
Explaining how people get easily addicted to use of drugs, Odeku said, “A young man addicted to codeine consumes up to six bottles of the substance contained in a cough syrup each day.
After a user realises that the drug no longer provides him/her the desire level of testacy, he/she starts making a cocktail with spirits and other prescription drugs.
“Most abusers of drugs do not think of the negative impact on their bodies. All drugs are poisons. Drug misuse can completely alter the normal physiological functions of the body and it takes more than 48 hours for some drugs to be eliminated from the body," she added.
Odeku also said the CCRWG, would collaborate with other agencies and civil societies towards tackling the menace posed by codeine abuse in the society, adding that it would adopt a aggressive public enlightenment strategy on campuses to warn Nigerian youths on the hazards associated with drug abuse.
Reacting to question of how the group intend to monitor the supply of the drug in the country, she said ‘‘The working group actually consists of regulatory agencies and relevant stakeholders that are involved in drug manufacture, distribution and regulation."
Part of the terms of reference is to look at the supply chain and come up with recommendations on how the drug supply and distribution systems can be managed to properly control the sale of controlled substances.
It will also entail the design of pharmacy screening, monitoring and surveillance systems especially at the level of dispensing to drug users.
“We are still working on the strategies that will be adopted. We have to look at the problem holistically and come up with our recommendations.
The Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole, has given us six weeks to come up with an interim report. That is what we are still working on."
She called on policy makers, civil and non-governmental organisations as well as other relevant stakeholders to work assiduously together with the group to ultimately overcome the challenge.
