The Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) in the Northeast Region has initiated a campaign to combat drug abuse in the area, confiscating and disposing of more than 200 medical products, including tramadol, a commonly misused medication among young people. The FDA seized the illegal drugs, including tramadol, in a joint operation with the Gambaga and Nalerigu Youth Association, National Investigation Bureau, Narcotic Control Board, and other stakeholders.
The region’s head of the FDA, Jacob Amoako Mensah, warned the youth to refrain from drug abuse, saying that addiction can lead to detrimental effects on their lives and contribute to criminal behaviour. The destroyed drugs were seized from various locations in Gambaga and were worth thousands of dollars. The operation was part of a sustained effort by the FDA to combat drug abuse in the region.
Drug addiction among the youth is a serious issue in Ghana, and the FDA has been working to reduce its prevalence. The agency is urging parents, teachers, and community leaders to help prevent drug abuse among young people.
Mr Amoako Mensah said, “What we want to tell the youth is that they should desist from tramadol. When it gets to a point when the person has become addicted, it is difficult to treat such a person. So we don’t want them to be using tramadol. Let doctors prescribe tramadol before one uses it.”
“This exercise today, we have the youth, we have the Gambaga and Nalerigu Youth Association, the National Investigation Bureau, and Narcotic Control Board, all being part and the two Associations who have helped us to embark on this particular exercise to destroy this quantity of tramadol that we are destroying today.”
