Besides being a security risk to all communities, drugs have destroyed the academic and professional prospects of some young people.
This is what moved Tyeks Security Services and the SAPS to collaborate on a drug awareness campaign at Sinolwazi High School in Chris Hani Township, Mthatha, on June 10.
Tyeks spokesperson, Siyabonga Ngcangisa, said the theme for the event was, “Are you choosing jail time or a bright future?”
He said that as June was declared a Youth Month in South Africa, the current crop of young people faced a different challenge, including drug dealing and addiction, as opposed to the 1976 generation.
Addressing about 1 500 learners, including Grade 12s, Ngcangisa said the event was intended to remind the youth about the long-term repercussions of drugs.
He said people did not know that the reason some people were unemployed was due to criminal records.
Some of the crimes committed, he said, were due to drug addiction.
“Besides being a security risk to all communities, drugs have destroyed the academic and professional prospects of some young people,” he said.
Principal Isaac Labane said the school was fighting a losing battle against drugs.
He pleaded with the community leaders to help the youth fight against drug abuse in the community.
“They do all these drug-related activities during break time, and the police assisting us do the best they can. These habits cause a lot of academic distractions, and communities at large should also jump in and assist,” he said.
Sinolwazi is among the schools indicated by the Mthatha SAPS as a notoriously drug-troubled school.
This, according to Ngcangisa, after police discovered various illegal substances during several random drug searches at the school.
Warrant Officer William Bhebheza of the Mthatha Central Police Station urged the youth to follow in the footsteps of their drug-free elders, who are interested in education, and should see them as their role models.
“You’ve got good role models around you, but you choose not to see that, and instead you want to go your own direction. This is Youth Month, your month, and that means you should love yourself and respect your future. I don’t like what I usually discover each time I come to this school,” Bhebheza said.
Anthony du Plessis, a former drug addict who managed to quit the habit and later became the head of the Dog Unit at Tyeks Security, reflected on his previous life of drugs.
He warned the pupils against seeing drug experimenting as a fancy lifestyle. Part of his job, ironically, entails conducting drug searches using sniffer dogs he has trained.
OR Tambo District Police spokesperson, Captain Welile Matyolo, urged communities to work with police to rid communities of drug syndicates.
“These children are being used by drug syndicates who ask them to bring the stuff to the school grounds. It causes chaos and leads them to drop out of school and end up in jail, which is detrimental to the future of our country,” Matyolo said.
The National Youth Risk Behaviour Survey, conducted at High Schools in South Africa, has found that almost 50 percent of pupils between Grades 8 and 11 have used alcohol in their lifetime, while 13 percent opted for cannabis.
