Skip to main content

Drug Abuse: Senate Initiates 2 Bills

Nigerian-Senate
The Senate has developed two draft bills for legislation to tackle drug abuse.
This was part of the outcome of the roundtable convened by the President of the Senate, Dr Bukola Saraki, in December 2017 in Kano on the rising drug abuse in the country.
The proposed bills are National Drug Control Bill and National Mental Health Bill.
A statement by the Media Office of the President of the Senate said the Drug Control Bill seeks to clarify the mandate and strengthen the capacity of National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) and the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) to eradicate the illicit production, and trafficking of controlled substances.
“It also seeks to establish a central mechanism to facilitate collaboration among law enforcement, regulatory and public health authorities in line with the National Drug Control Policy.
“The Bill further focuses on proactive law enforcement and regulatory measures towards the eradication of the illicit importation, production and trafficking of controlled substances.”
The statement further said the bill sought to criminalise the diversion, distribution or otherwise dispensing of controlled substances without a prescription or license.
On mental health bill, the statement noted that, in recognition of the fact that psychosocial issues are the key drivers for the abuse of the psychoactive substance, the bill was crafted to ensure that standard facilities were available in every state to provide mental health and substance abuse services.
The proposed law guarantees the protection of the rights of people with mental illness and stipulates that mental health practitioners and facilities no longer engage in practices that are harmful to people with mental health and substance use disorders.
In recognising the low number of mental health practitioners in the country with the ratio of practitioners at one psychiatrist to 1.6 million people, the draft law makes provision for quality mental health and substance abuse services available for women and adolescents, who are an underserved segment of the population.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

BANDIT GUNRUNNER ARRESTED

  Police in Zaria city arrested Bilyaminu Saidu 33years, a gun runner, bandit & logistics supplier. He was arrested with 4 AK-47 rifles, 344 rounds of live ammunition & one motorcycle. Bilyaminu is an indigene of Shuwaki village in Bakori LGA of Katsina state.

Court fixes June 11th for arraignment of Edo PDP governorship candidate Pastor Ize - Iyamu for Money laundering

                        A Federal High Court sitting in Benin City has adjourned to June 11th 2018 for the arraignment of Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, a PDP governoship candidate in the last gubernatorial election in Edo state. Four others to be arraigned alongside are: Lucky Imasuen, former deputy governor of Edo State; Chief Dan Orbih, PDP chairman in Edo State; Tony Azigbemi and Efe Erimuoghae Anthony.  The quintet were said to have conspired among themselves to committ an offence contrary to the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act. During court proceedings yesterday, May 16, 2018, the arraignment of the defendants could not hold because of the failure of Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu and Chief Dan Orbih to appear in court in person. Counsel to Dan Orbih, Chief Ferdinard O. Orbih, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, SAN, told the court that his client was ...

Former Ohio judge who battered his wife and was released from jail after only 9 months has now killed her

                                An Ohio Judge who punched his wife 20 times in 2014, slammed her head against the dashboard of his car, and broke her orbital bone in front of their kids, spent only 9 months in jail before he was released. Now, he has allegedly stabbed the woman to death. Former Ohio judge Lance Mason was forced from the bench and served prison time for viciously assaulting his then-wife Aisha Fraser. He was released early from jail because he wrote an apology letter to his wife which she accepted. But, on Saturday morning Nov 17th, she was found stabbed to death and Mason has been taken into custody. The incident occurred at Aisha Fraser's suburban Cleveland home on Saturday. Fraser's boyfriend told WKYC that Fraser owned the home and rented it out to Mason's sister...