There has been some amount of consternation expressed over the reported “discovery of the recreational drug ecstasy in five schools,” which came about as a result of “investigations” by the Customs Anti-Narcotic Unit (CANU), according to the agency’s Deputy Head Lesley Ramlall, who was speaking at the opening of his organisation’s annual staff training on Monday.
In addition, Mr Ramlall expounded on the fact that ecstasy was not only being used by youths but also by the “affluent” persons in society and according to a report in this newspaper’s Tues-day edition, often for sexual enhancement, was “now trickling down into the school system” and that “more and more” synthetic drugs were coming into the country, pointing to a noticeable increase in use this year. According to the report, Mr Ramlall also pointed to the seizure during this year of synthetic drugs, such as heroin, ecstasy and crystal methamphetamine, the presence of which is of major concern. He stated that ecstasy appeared to be the common narcotic that was readily available at nightclubs and parties, the report said, adding that he called the synthetic drugs part of a “new trend” which is a “very worrying one for Guyana.”
Mr Ramlall’s carefully crafted soundbites/ quotes were probably for a specific audience, but surely not for those persons who have long had concerns with drug use/abuse and therefore would have been paying attention to the local situation. Because those persons are fully aware that there is nothing new as regards the use of synthetic drugs, even among students. Sadly, there is also nothing new about the authorities’ approach to dealing with the issue. In a survey conducted by the Organisation of American States’ (OAS) Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission in 2013, which targeted 1,890 students from 28 secondary schools across the country, it was revealed that there was an “increase in the average age of first time use of tobacco, alcohol, crack and ecstasy when compared to the results of a previous survey done in 2007.” The report of the findings of this survey was released in September 2015 and at that time, Minister of Public Security Khemraj Ramjattan had said he was “disheartened” by the results. He had stated that “… the aim of the present drug strategy is to reduce the use of drugs and minimize the harm that they can cause to individual users and even the community at large.” He had also assured the nation that this would see the involvement of experts (towards) reducing demand and supply of the drugs and providing treatment options and developing a skilled workforce to respond to drug use and abuse. “The problem is not the supply, production and consumption of drug[s] but the major issue is the effect of the drugs on people’s behaviour that makes them a danger to others including the general society,” he had added. It has been three years since. Is it possible that Mr Ramjattan has forgotten that report and what he said back then? Because on Monday he was quoted as saying that law enforcement agencies were “losing the battle” as drugs have found their way into schools and urging parents to help in steering their children away from ecstasy and other drugs.
Mr Ramlall had also said on Monday, that his agency was working with the Ministry of Education in respect to the “investigation.” So which agency is working with the ministry as regards ensuring that the dangers of synthetic drugs, and more specifically ecstasy, are well explained to both school administrators and students? Or is the Education Ministry already on top of this? It has been proven that it is not enough to tell children, or anyone else, to ‘say no to drugs.’
Ecstasy is a stimulant and it affects persons differently based on their size, weight, health, the amount taken, the strength of the manufactured batch and what else is taken along with it, such as alcohol, cannabis or other drugs. Some of the effects that may be experienced after taking ecstasy include: increased confidence and energy, lowered inhibitions, increased blood pressure and heart rate, nausea, sweating, vomiting, hallucinations and convulsions (fits). This is by no means an exhaustive list.
Ecstasy is deemed a recreational drug, and this can be misleading as there is no safe level of drug use. The gaily-coloured ecstasy pills, capsules, crystal or powder can contain a mix of amphetamine, paramethoxyamphetamine, ketamine, NBOMe, methylone or other substances; they may or may not contain methylenedioxymethamphetamine. Precur-sor substances or fillers that are used in the manufacture of the synthetic drug include what is known as ‘bath salts’ or synthetic cathinones, a class of drugs that have one or more manmade chemicals related to cathinone, a stimulant found naturally in khat, a mildly narcotic plant grown in East Africa and southern Arabia. The manmade cathinones are much stronger than the natural product and can be very dangerous. They are otherwise sold in small plastic or foil packages labelled ‘not for human consumption’. The white or brown crystal-like powder is sometimes labelled ‘plant food’, ‘jewellery cleaner’ or ‘phone screen cleaner’ to avoid detection. ‘Bath salts’ sometimes causes severe intoxication, psychosis, dangerous health effects and although rare, death.
Back in 2010, there had been calls made for the strengthening of the Government Analyst-Food and Drug Department so that it would be able to successfully monitor the importation, sale and use of precursor substances and chemicals in collaboration with the police and CANU. To date, the Analyst Department has not received the financial and other resources it so desperately needs. It is entirely possible at this point, given Guyana’s porous borders and the ease with which public officials can be bribed, that such substances and chemicals could be entering the country.
The 2018 International Narcotics Control Strategy Report issued by the US State Department notes in part that “a lack of resources, weak law enforcement institutions, an ineffective judicial system, and inadequate compensation for civil service employees and public safety officials facilitate corruption throughout all sectors.” While the report commended the government’s strict policies against corruption, it pointed out that it has difficulty in investigating and successfully prosecuting corruption cases.
Getting ecstasy, and other drugs, out of schools and restricting their use in society in general therefore requires a much more holistic approach than has been seen to date.
