The Western Regional Command of the Narcotics Control Commission (NACOC) has renewed calls for the establishment of a drug rehabilitation centre in the region, warning that the absence of a treatment facility remains one of the biggest setbacks in efforts to combat substance abuse and support the recovery of persons battling addiction.
The Senior Narcotics Control Officer of the Command, Godlove Vanden-Bossche, made the appeal in an interview with Citi FM and Channel One TV during this year’s World Drug Day sensitisation campaign at St. John’s School in Sekondi on Friday, June 26.
According to him, many people struggling with drug addiction have expressed a willingness to undergo rehabilitation, but their efforts are often frustrated because there is no rehabilitation centre anywhere in the Western Region.
He noted that while the Greater Accra Region alone has more than 28 rehabilitation centres, the Western Region has none, making access to treatment and recovery services difficult for residents in need of professional care.
“We can do our best as a Commission, but the main service these people need is a rehabilitation centre. We need a rehabilitation centre in the Western Region. The centres are all concentrated in Accra, Kumasi and the Central Region.
“We also have indications that people are moving away from the traditional drugs we know to the abuse of prescription drugs, so it is something we also have to pay attention to.
“Our main concern is the non-existence of treatment centres in the region. I am hoping that individuals and organisations interested in setting up such centres will engage us so we can work together,” he said.
