‘Drugs Killing Children’

A part from climate change, the biggest scourge in Fiji is drugs as it is killing children, says the Minister for Home Affairs and Immigration Pio Tikoduadua.

While speaking as the chief guest at the Rotary Club Labasa’s Gala Night on Saturday in Labasa, Mr Tikoduadua expressed how shocking it was to receive information about parents using their children to peddle drugs in Labasa.

“I know the use of both green and white drugs is very com-mon throughout Fiji, but I never thought that the use of children by their parents to sell drugs at school or in the community because it was something that was restricted to the cities,” Mr Tikoduadua said.

He said to be told that it was happening in Labasa, was an indication that now it spread to other communities apart from Suva.

“I am a big educator of the fact that our war on drugs must be led by the community,” he said.

He said the reason why the community must take a lead was because the community bore the children and the people, not the Government.

“Of course Government has the ultimate responsibility of looking after the welfare and the security and the wellbeing of its people but parents, grandfathers, grand-mothers, aunties, uncles, these are the people that actually bear and bore the people,” he said.

“So ultimately that responsibility to address their needs all the time continues to remain to be their responsibility that cannot be taken away but the Government is doing its bit”

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