Grand Gedeh County Senator, Zoe Emmanuel Pennue, has urged the 55th National Legislature, especially the Liberian Senate, to urgently handle the alarming rate of young Liberians categorically called “zogoes” with emergency.
Speaking Tuesday at the 1st sitting of the 1st session of the Liberian Senate for the 55th Legislature, Senator Pennue mentioned that the first action by the Liberian Senate to that effect should be a vigorous vetting for nominees at the Liberia Drugs Enforcement Agency (LDEA).
Numerous reports indicate that Liberia has one of the highest rates of drug use in West Africa, with cannabis and heroin being the most used.
Senator Pennue cautioned the Senate Statutory Committee on Defense, Security, Human Rights and Veteran Affairs, headed by Lofa County Senator Momo Tarnuekollie Cyrus, to take into account during the committee’s vetting process for nominees of LDEA the alarming rate of harmful drug users in the Liberian society and ensure that individuals taking on said task are properly qualified to help with the fight against drug abuse.
He added that, as it stands, the LDEA is weak and lacks every capacity to combat the issue of drugs, which Senator Pennue attributed to the lack of qualified individuals to provide proper leadership over the entity.
In July 2023, President George M. Weah signed into law the Controlled Drug and Substances Act of 2023, commonly called the drug law. The Liberian Leader signed the bill into law after it was passed by the National Legislature following months of deliberation.
In spite of the enactment of the law and subsequent approval by President Weah, Senator Pennue said he still believes that the law can only be significant if the LDEA is robust on the frontline to ensure that violators are apprehended and made to face the full weight of the law, without fear or favor.
The new anti-drug law aims to regulate, restrict, control, limit or eradicate the illegal export and importation, as well as the flagrant use, abuse and proliferation of narcotic substances within Liberia.
Senator Pennue maintained that the health sector in southeastern Liberia continues to experience the consistent lack of medicines and ambulances to take patients from one destination to another.
Senator Pennue, along with many lawmakers, are making frantic effort to ensure that there are national efforts to rescue the younger generation from drug abuse.