Family members of regular drug users sometimes find it easier to sweep their problems under the rug or to take matters into their own hands, while alienating themselves from the community.
Dr Aleit Pretorius of the Centre for Transformation Development who works with youth whose lives are affected by drugs, said it’s not solely the work of the family members to uplift people who are struggling with substance abuse, but community involvement is also imperative.
A similar problem surfaced in Roodepoort when inspectors of the Roodepoort Society for the Prevention of Cruelty against Animals (SPCA) found a young man chained up outside his house.
Roodepoort SPCA manager Mandy Cattanach said, “We went out on a post home inspection that usually happens after an animal is adopted from us. As we arrived at what seemed to be a scrap-yard of sorts in Tshepisong, we noticed that no one was around and, just as we wanted to turn around and leave, we heard a faint scream and we jumped over the fence to investigate the matter.”
She explained that inspectors followed the screaming voice that led them to the back of the premises. What happened next, shocked the inspectors. “As we came around the corner, we saw a young man whose leg was cuffed to the outside structure of a building. He screamed and begged us to release him and explained that he had been cuffed there for the last month,” added Cattanach.
Roodepoort SPCA immediately alerted Roodepoort Canine Unit and Johannesburg Metro Police, who arrived on scene at about 1pm – almost two hours after the inspectors had discovered the man.
Cattanach explained that the 20-year-old man is currently at the Sparrows Rainbow Village in Roodepoort where he is receiving medical attention.
Metro Police spokesperson Wayne Minnaar confirmed that Metro Police officers arrived on scene, and when they asked the man why he was handcuffed outside the building, he said his mother was upset with him, because he was a regular drug user and, in a effort to stop him from using drugs, she cuffed him to the building.
“For fear of violence and retribution, we can’t release the name or the photo of the man and it’s his responsibility to report the case to the police, as we are unable to do that on his behalf.”
Pretorius explained that the only way to help a regular drug user to drop the habit is by replacing it with something else.
“The first thing that we do at the Centre for Transformation Development is, we send the person for counselling to find out why and from where the problem developed. After this, we sit down and speak about their dreams and future plans to help them understand how important it is to work on their future.”
He added that parents and friends of regular drug users can feel free to contact him for advice.
Details: Dr Aleit Pretorius 082 707 3529.
