IN JAMAICA: Drug abuse council launches ganja education campaign

BY JEDIAEL CARTER Observer staff reporter carterj@jamaicabserver.com  Friday, July 10, 2015    

THE National Council on Drug Abuse (NCDA) says it is taking action to stem the prevalence of drug use among young people by educating them.

"Our primary responsibility right now is protecting young people from the negative consequences of using [drugs]," Executive Director of the NCDA, Michael Tucker told the Jamaica Observer yesterday.

Chairman of the board of the National Council on Drug
Abuse Dr Wendel Abel (right) present cups that promote the
 ganja public education campaign to Minister of Health
 Dr Fenton Ferguson (left) and Chief Medical Director
 Dr Marion Bullock-Ducasse, while executive director of
 the council Michael Tucker proudly looks on.
(PHOTO: MICHAEL GORDON)

This comes on the heels of reports that students were ingesting marijuana in candies and the recent legislative amendment to the Dangerous Drugs Act, which created several opportunities for the use of marijuana in Jamaica because of the decriminalisation of small amounts of the weed.

The NCDA, with the support of the Ministry of Health, yesterday launched a public education campaign themed "Ganja: Know the Facts, Know How to Act".

Speaking at a press conference yesterday, Tucker told journalists that the campaign is expected to inform the public on the boundaries of the legislation, an individual's rights and liabilities under the Act, behavioural responsibilities in the new legislative environment and the NCDA's role in supporting and protecting vulnerable populations.

"The council will be taking a multitiered, collaborative approach to managing and preventing or reducing harm to high risk groups through a public health strategy which includes mass media, advocacy and regulations, education programming and surveillance," Tucker said.

He said that through the campaign, the council is hoping to reduce by 30 per cent the number of persons arrested for the possession of more than two ounces of ganja in public places and the caseload of criminal courts for ganja possession. He said the council was also hoping to see a decrease in the number of students ages 13-18 who start smoking ganja while still in school.

The director told the Observer that the NCDA was working outside of the public education programme to inform the youth. more