Pretoria | Wednesday
NARCOTIC drugs worth up to R1,43-billion ($178-million) were seized by South African police last year, the police announced on Tuesday.
Their haul included about 500 tonnes of marijuana, 19 million mandrax tablets, nearly 500 kilograms of cocaine, almost 200_000 amphetamines and 11.5 tons of hashish, detective services commissioner Johan de Beer said.
Mandrax, a synthetic sedative, is popular among drug addicts in South Africa, particularly when smoked together with marijuana.
”The size of the seizures are an indication of the enormity of the drug problem facing South Africa and the rest of the world,” De Beer said in a statement prepared for Drug Awareness Day on Tuesday.
He said police were achieving some success in curbing drug trafficking by co-operating with various international policing agencies but still depended on community participation to help with investigations.
Members of South Africa’s national cricket team promised, in support of Drug Awareness Day, that they would commit themselves to fight against drugs and promised to be positive role models.
International cricketer Herschelle Gibbs was fined R10_000 (about $1_250) along with five team mates for smoking marijuana in a hotel room while on tour in the West Indies in April.
In Soweto township, west of Johannesburg, the day was marked by the inauguration of a multi-purpose sport centre.
In Cape Town the youth leagues of the four largest political parties met to discuss plans to eradicate and curb gangsterism and drugs in schools on the impoverished Cape Flats. – AFP