EDITOR – I fully support the DA’s latest call for the restoration of the province’s specialised Drug Intervention Units.
In the same vein, we also need to look at the problem of rehabilitation which should be of concern to both the Health and Social Development departments.
There are only two state rehab centres in KZN; namely in Newlands, Durban and in Madadeni, Newcastle.
We should be in a position to have a three-monthly intake of hundreds of patients in both yet each can only accommodate in the double figures.
Social Development has a waiting list of over a year just for interviews for possible admission. After that there is another 6 months wait on average to get in; that’s if the person is accepted to begin with.
It takes many years for an addict to accept they need help and once they do they face an uphill battle to get the rehabilitation they so desperately need. Unsurprisingly, many end up going off the rails or land themselves in jail where drugs are also freely available.
Many come out of jail and become repeat offenders as a result.
We need more state rehab centres in various areas of the province to fight the drug scourge and need to be able to more than triple the present intake to help as many addicts get back on the straight and narrow as possible.
Glenn McArthur
DA Councillor
