Marijuana silently killing our society

GIVEN the current socio-economic settings of Papua New Guinea where much of the development is confined to the urban areas and where there is high unemployment, a minority of our people have taken on various illegal means to earn an income.
One of these illegal means is the cultivation and sale of marijuana.
The reality is that this drug has a market that has been established over time.
We all understand that when there is an established market, that market has to be constantly supplied because of the persistent demand.
Marijuana has an established market amongst certain segments of our population and that market is getting big and extensive across the breadth and population of PNG.
And its market and supply chains are getting sophisticated by the minute.
The significance of this issue rests not so much on whether or not the drug is legal rather its effect on its users is what matters most.
This drug makes its consumers lazy and they eat a lot of food, and has a lot more other effects including serious ones, when abused.
Its use is addictive and contagious amongst our youngsters. These youngsters are in the productive bracket of our population.
These youth will become a liability because they won’t be productive to contribute to the economy of this country.
However, the government will have to provide services for them, regardless of whether or not they work to earn an income to support themselves like all other Papua New Guineans.
With the level and nature of development taking place in PNG the sophistication of our population is increasing and must not be undermined.
A sophisticated population in a developing country is like a metropolitan with varied lifestyle choices, but sprawled in the sparseness of the country with breathing space for sophisticated means to an end.
This is just but one factor of consumption escalation on a broad base.
It is a cross-cutting developmental problem that needs a concerted effort from all stakeholders, right thru to the family unit, to cohesively address from all fronts.
Failure to contain this problem within reasonable time could result in the government expending more development funds to expand and decentralise the Laloki Psychiatric Hospital services to all provinces.
We will have a real problem if marijuana consumption rates in the productive bracket of our population escalate to 30 per cent and counting.
Marijuana and its impact is a monster lurking in the shadows of development in Papua New Guinea.
 
Alois Balar
Bainings, ENB