Call for support of local man’s quest to kick whoonga addiction

A young whoonga addict’s attempt to kick the habit may well lead to efforts to start up a rehab house in the area.

Njabulo Ngobese (26) has been clean since 1 January after pleas from his mother to come clean and “I just felt in my heart it was time”.

Maestro Mncibi, who has lent Njabulo a helping hand in his quest to stay clean, will meet with the Amanzimtoti Community Upliftment Project later this week to discuss a support structure for addicts wanting to give up and is looking into renting a premises to start a rehab house.

Njabulo was born in Bhekulwandle and finished grade 10 at Vikingeozi High School before a friend introduced him to whoonga.

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Whoonga or nyaope is cheap form of heroin, mixed with a variety of ingredients such as rat poison, soap powder and the main ingredient, anti retro-viral (ARVs) drugs, which are used in the treatment of AIDs. The mix is then rolled with dagga and smoked. It has come into widespread use in South Africa since 2010, mostly in the impoverished townships of Durban. It is highly addictive, dangerous and destructive and a lot of today’s petty crime is attributed to addicts’ needing the money to purchase their next fix.

Side effects include a painful stomach, muscle cramps and feeling ill, but when these symptoms ease up, addicts use again. It is the withdrawal – the unbearable stomach cramps, nausea, mood swings and aggression – that makes whoonga so addictive.

Njabulo has been using since 2008 but decided late last year that it was time to come clean. “My mother begged me to stop and I wanted to stop,” he said. “I have been doing part-time jobs and working in gardens and with the money I made, I bought whoonga.”

Maestro, who is involved in the Community Policing Forum and Community Crime Prevention Organisation (CCPO), was one of the people who employed Njabulo to do handyman jobs around his house since May.

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“When he told me he wanted to stop, I realised there is no support structure for these addicts who want to kick the habit,” he said. “I knew he could only do it if he had support.” Njabulo was living with his mother in Bhekulwandle but Maestro offered him a place to stay at his house in Shulton Park to help him stay on the straight and narrow.

“It has been easy to stop, because I wanted to stop and I wanted to do it for myself,” said Njabulo. “Besides feeling very tired the first couple of days, I’ve been fine. I saw my mother on Sunday for the first time since I gave up and she was so happy to see me.”

Njabulo is very respectful and a good handyman and, most importantly, has no criminal record. He now needs work to keep him busy. If you can employ him on a part-time or full-time basis, call Maestro on 073-424-1950 or email mlungisimncibi@gmail.com.