Drugs worth Sh1.4 million destroyed in Vihiga

Police in Vihiga County have destroyed several illegal drugs and substances, including a van worth Sh1.4 million.

Officers destroyed the van containing 450 brooms, 2,000 liters of chang'aa and five cartons of smuggled cigarettes.

Others included 110 rolls of bhang, 4 kilograms of powdered bhang and 10 kilograms of bhang seeds.

Yesterday, Vihiga County Commissioner Felix Watakila led the activities at the Luanda market.

Watakira told journalists during the exercise that he had decided to publicly destroy the drugs as a warning to people involved in illegal businesses.

“As a government, we will not allow criminals to take over our county through vans and illegal beer sales businesses,” Watakira said.

The drugs were seized by police, but the suspects managed to escape during a raid conducted to remove drugs and narcotics from the county.

Watakira declared that operations would be intensified across the five sub-counties of Vihiga.

“I have instructed my superiors to continue the operation and ensure that illegal beer is wiped out,” Watakira said.

Some of the contraband cigarettes and illegal drinks are said to be smuggled into the county from neighboring Uganda through Busia's porous border.

The Commissioner urged residents to stop abusing drugs and instead focus on beneficial economic activities to improve their lives.

Watakira lamented that the use of vans is having a negative impact on the level of education, morals and economic development in Vihiga.

“Bang and illegal beer have caused some students to drop out of school and engage in criminal activities here in Luanda and elsewhere,” Watakila said.

He called on local residents to volunteer information to help police take out drug traffickers and brewers.

According to a report on drug use and abuse in the country released by the National Alcohol and Drug Abuse Control Agency (NACADA) on May 12, Western countries had the highest rate of alcohol use in 2022 at 24%.

In the West, 24%, or 767,789 people, were alcohol dependent. According to the survey, the western region was followed by the coastal region with 14 percent and the central region with 13 percent.

Luanda South MCA Kelvin Mwangu said the eradication of drugs was crucial to save residents who were at risk of becoming addicted to drugs.