DRUG ABUSE IN CAMPUS

Drug Abuse in Universities

What is a drug? A drug is a chemical substance that alters the normal function of the body. When a drug is used for a purpose that it was not meant for, we call that process drug abuse.

Drug abuse is rampant in universities in Kenya and this begs the question why is this so and who is to blame? Universities are not only institutions of higher learning, but also centers of academic excellence and those who reside there are expected to be role models in the society. They are at the zenith of learning and are opinion leaders in most discourse in the society. These are the people who are looked at when a society is going through problems which are beyond the ordinary villager.

Drugs abused in these institutions range from alcohol, bhang to even hard drugs like cocaine and heroin. Many explanations have been put forward about causes of such behavior among students, but none has had a conclusive insight into this phenomenon.

There are those who subscribe to the view that increased and uncontrolled freedom must be the cause of excessive drug abuse in universities. The proponents of this view posit that a human being is generally a freedom loving animal and when a chance presents itself, they try to use it to the maximum.

Most high schools in Kenya are strict and impose rules and regulations that make students feel like caged animals. They lack the freedom to do several things and when they join the university they find an environment that is free from constant surveillance. With this new found freedom, they go head first and sink deep into whatever they pick on. In a university there is a lot of freedom that if one is not disciplined then messing up is the order of the day.

There are those who blame drug abuse on peer pressure and influence. They say that the kind of friends one chooses in the university will determine the kind of life he will lead. If you have friends who do drugs you will definitely also engage in drugs. This is occasioned by the need to belong and pledge loyalty to the group.

The other school of thought attributes this behaviour to the amount of cash that students are exposed to in the university. In high school you are only given a small amount of money usually referred to as ‘pocket’ money for your use. This is not the case in the university. Students are given loans by the government through Higher Education Loans Board, HELB. This money is misused by students as they use it to live high life which involves abusing drugs.

Some also link drug abuse to stress of learning especially those taking technical courses such as Medicine, Engineering and science-related ones. They argue that when tough gets going in learning these students resort to drugs to blow away the pressures of deadlines. The fear of failure also makes some students engage in drugs in the hope that they will post good results doing drugs.

Students have succumbed to accidents; some have contracted diseases while others have dropped out of school due to the problem of drug abuse. Heavy penalties should be put in place for those found peddling drugs in schools so as to avert this looming crisis. The action starts with you and me. Let us be our brother’s keeper.