2016-11-17Staff Report 2 Kuisebmond A Kuisebmond mother who is a single parent of three children is pleading with the community of Walvis Bay and the country at large to help her save her 11-old-son who is a drug addict. The 42-year-old mother, whose identity is withheld to protect her minor son, says her boy is so hooked on drugs that he disappears from home for weeks, only to return looking like a wild person. The very distressed and worried mother, during an interview this week, told New Era that her son admitted recently to her that he has been smoking dagga for months now and also sniffs Benzene and Pattex glue to get high. Benzene and Pattex are sniffed through clothes or other material. According to her, her son previously lived with relatives in Gobabis where he started having trouble with the law and was even locked up for three weeks. He had been staying with her since 2013 and was schooling at !Nara Primary School up to Grade 3. Sadly he got mixed up with the wrong types and started using drugs. “I had high hopes for my son … but drugs are ruining his future. Please help my son, I feel so sorry for him and yet I am scared of him. The person I am dealing with is not my son but an addict, ”she pleaded with New Era. The mother who is a domestic worker says earlier this year she noticed that her son had a strange glint in his eyes and he then became aggressive towards her and his younger brother. “I was notified by teachers that he is not attending school and when I confronted him he admitted that he left school because of drugs,” she explained. He apparently at one stage fought with her and even ran away from home. He was then found in Usakos by the police after two weeks of searching and was brought back to Walvis Bay and taken to social workers. “He lied to social workers and told them that he is an orphan and was allegedly raped. However, a test done on him showed that it was not the case,” she said. According to the mother, her son stays with about 14 young boys who are all addicted to drugs. “Please help me with these children. They are all so young and will die if we don’t do something about their addiction soon,” she said. “He will die if he doesn’t get help soon.” She says there are no facilities at Walvis Bay that treat drug addicts as young as her son. “I really want government and the community at large to look into the possibility of setting up such a facility in the country.” When consulted, Lucia Fredericks, a life skills teacher at De Duine Secondary School, Walvis Bay, said there are no centres that treat such young drug addicts, especially schoolchildren. “Children as young as 11 years getting involved with drugs and alcohol abuse is unbelievable but a sad reality. But I have been vocal about setting up a centre that can solely cater for kids, if we want to rescue our children,” she said. She explained that there have been numerous meetings where the possibility of such a centre has been discussed by stakeholders. “If we can get different stakeholders involved we can set up a centre where learners are rehabilitated and also get to complete the school syllabus,” she said. Chairperson of the Narraville Neighbourhood Watch who is also the principal of Narraville Primary School, Paul Fisher, said Walvis Bay has become a drug hub where young learners are falling victim to drug abuse. Fisher said numerous residences at the town sell drugs to kids or use kids as runners. “More and more innocent kids are lured by drug dealers without the knowledge of their parents. Once they are trapped in the web of drugs it will become a battle to get them out of it,” he said. 2016-11-17Staff Report 2
