Mpumalanga MEC to tackle drug addiction in Pienaar
MEC Mandla Msibi led the renovation of a rehabilitation centre as part of his ward’s initiative to move people addicted to drugs there to be assisted.
The streets of Pienaar are slowly becoming a safe haven for everyone to roam free without being mugged mostly by nyaope-addicted boys.
This is after an intervention from the ANC Youth League (Ancyl) in the area and the ANC provincial treasurer and MEC for co-operative governance and traditional affairs, Mandla Msibi, who took the initiative to renovate the local Takheni Rehab Centre. This centre offers rehabilitation programmes for drug addicts.
“Our streets are filled with drug addicts who have run away from home because of addiction. Sadly, most of them are young people. This is not right. And so as a leader of society, coming from a caring organisation, the ANC, I decided to come into this space when I was invited and help fight the scourge of drug abuse in our communities.
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“This is not just a Pienaar programme, however, we are piloting it here and within the greater Mbombela. Look how the CBD, especially Anderson Street, is so infested with drug addicts.
“We need to go there and assist the young people,” said Msibi.
He said he believes given the opportunity, the youth can be saved from drugs. This is why he became involved in the programme to help drive them back to the rehab centre for treatment.
Speaking on behalf of Ancyl regarding this programme, Ward 26 chairperson Innocent Msibi said they actually started looking after drug addicts in 2021.
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“We started this programme after seeing a number of young people being forced onto the streets to live as hobos because of drug abuse. We decided to come together, and at the time we were working with Cllr Bhekifa Mkhatshwa, who is also a young person. We managed to change the lives of more than 10 people who were addicts.
“They are now in recovery and have gone back to rebuild their lives. We decided to extend the aid to surrounding areas within the City of Mbombela with the help of Takheni Rehab Centre,” he said.
The Ward 26 chairperson said due to this intervention, the number of young people seeking help increased, which also meant that they needed more resources and help. This is where key players such as the MEC and Adv Silungi Thobela came into the picture.
The centre is currently fully packed, with limited space, but the MEC has since committed to donate land where a larger centre would be built so it can accommodate more patients.
