HEADTEACHERS ADMIT DRUGS ARE A PROBLEM

Nairobi

Headteachers were last week divided over the issue of drugs in schools just
a fortnight before they admit Form Ones freshly selected from last year's
successful Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE) candidates.

While there is general consensus that the problem of drug abuse and
trafficking in schools is on the increase, opinion is divided on what could
be the real cause. A section of leaders and school administrators blame it
on cultural pollution, a reference to the increasingly popular western
culture; others blame the laxity in the law enforcement agencies for the
escalation - while still others think it is a weakness of modern parenting
that places the least emphasis on moral values. But again not so
surprisingly, there are those like the police in Mombasa who are still
engaged in the denial game.

The headmistress of Mvita Primary School, Ms Stella Khayosa, makes an
interesting revelation. Though they would wish to control the drug problem
in the area, she says, it has become extremely difficult because pupils are
now being introduced into the business by their own families. "If a parent
or guardian sells hard drugs like is the case in this area, the child will
definitely either use or sell drugs," she says. This obviously makes the
matter difficult for teachers who claim that they receive little support
from parents. Most of the teachers from the affected schools also attribute
the problem to their locations.

For instance, the headmaster of Mombasa's Qubaa Primary School, Mr Abubakar
Maamun, and his deputy, Mr Lonard Moindi, have serious reservations over the
surrounding environment, which they say is teeming with drugs. Similar
sentiments have been expressed by the administration of Makupa High School,
who say they need the assistance of police to create a more refined
environment. But the day scholars are said to be more vulnerable, and easily
fall prey to the overtures from the peddlers in such environments. Besides,
perhaps because parents have not been so strict on the matter, whenever
school authorities choose to pursue students involved in drug cases, they
quickly drop out of school rather than wait to be disciplined.

But both parents and teachers in Mombasa blame police officers in Makupa,
Likoni and Nyali stations for allegedly releasing suspected drug peddlers
every time they are arrested. When confronted with the matter by the
residents, official police sources insist that they are not aware of any
drug peddlers in the area, the fact that they are often given details
notwithstanding. Interestingly, the Coast Provincial Commissioner, Cyrus
Maina, admits there is a serious drug problem in the region. "I have had to
sack some chiefs in Majengo for laxity. However, I also blame parents who
have refused to collectively fight drug abuse," says the PC. He says that,
even though his office is yet to receive specific details, it is now
apparent that there is some truth in the allegations that some police
officers and civil servants are playing a major role in the sale and
consumption of hard drugs.

Indeed, in his expert view, Dr Samuel Gatere, a psychiatrist, points out
that part of the problem could be that teenagers are today growing up in the
midst of cultural and moral confusion. "The moral fabric that held the
family together has essentially broken down and the youth have nowhere to
turn for guidance," he says. But the most common reasons singled out by both
psychiatrists and psychologists for substance abuse by students include
mounting peer pressure.

But contrary to the commonly held notion, the drug problem in Nairobi is not
confined to City Council Schools. It is a problem that has seeped into high
cost private schools. The Deputy Principal of Upper Hill Secondary, Mr Peter
Orero, says that even though his school is located in what would otherwise
be regarded as a safe area, his students started falling prey to the drug
problem in the late 1990s.

The problem is that, while everyone admits drug taking persists in schools,
few school administrators would directly concede that their students or
pupils are affected. The Principal of Kisumu Boys High School, Mr John
Awiti, readily admits that the problem is rampant among some of his
students. He attributed up to 90 per cent of cases of indiscipline in the
school to drug abuse.

Disclosing that there has been a syndicate involving shoe vendors and
students, he says most of the time suppliers of the drugs scale the fence to
drop the drug consignment at designated spots. Some suppliers still go as
far as drilling tiny holes on the school wall which they use to pass over
the drugs to students.