By Emmanuel Olinga
Katakwi District has reported growing cases of mental youth believed to be affected as result of marijuana uptake and excessive alcohol.
It’s observed that Katakwi town council, a growing town council, is cited with approximately 10-15 cases of mental males of about 17 to 25 years alleged to be marijuana spoil cases.
Recent records from the mental health unit at Katakwi General Hospital show that the district has already registered more than 300 related cases.
Stephen Ilemukorit Okure, the Resident District Commissioner RDC, is concerned over the growing cases of youth running mad in society due to marijuana smoking and are only exhibited in towns in search for food in dust bins.
In response to an increase in mental cases of teenagers loitering in Katakwi town as result of marijuana locally known as (ejae) uptake he pushed Katakwi’s lower local government leadership to put in place by laws prohibiting early alcohol usage in order to create an alcohol-free generation.
However, in an effort to reduce the increasing number of youth suffering from mental disorders, various stakeholders in Katakwi district and Teso at large have been urged to collaborate to ensure that youth, particularly those aged 17 to 25, stop consuming alcohol, narcotic drugs, particularly marijuana, and other substances used to indulge drunkenness.
Ilemukorit underlined the importance of citizens taking care of their health by testing and prioritizing hygiene and sanitation over drug misuse as security will work hard to enforce on marijuana smokers.
Meanwhile, Geoffrey Omolo, LCV chairperson Katakwi, stated that the consumption of marijuana and alcohol has contributed to an increase in murder cases.
He confirmed that he will engage various stakeholders to sensitize community members about the dangers of alcohol and marijuana consumption before implementing the bye laws.
According to health specialists drinking alcohol increases the chance of acquiring noncommunicable diseases such as liver disease, heart disease, and several types of cancer, as well as mental health and behavioral issues like depression, anxiety, and alcohol use disorders.
While marijuana, also known as pot or grass, is a mind-altering drug derived from the cannabis plant.
Marijuana’s effects begin almost immediately when the drug is smoked, as the other chemicals pass from the lungs into the bloodstream, where they are carried to the brain and throughout the body, causing lung damage, brain function changes, addiction, and memory impairment, among other things.
A 2018 survey of cannabis consumers by New Frontier Data also found that anxiety, pain, insomnia, arthritis, migraine, and nausea were each condition that self-identified medical cannabis users treated with cannabis.
Uganda is home to 2.6 million marijuana users, and in the pecking order of the notable weed consumers, the country sits among the top 10 on the continent.
In east Africa alone nearly 10 million people illegally use cannabis for various reasons, Tanzanian which ranks in 5th position among the top 20 marijuana consuming African countries, leads east Africa region with 3.6 million consumers followed by Kenya in the 6th position with 3.3 million and Uganda in the 8th position with 2.6 million users.
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