Drug addict vows to help others
Realising that his daughter is old enough to start going to school has changed a nyaope addict's mind.
Thabo Napo (29) from the Basuthwini section in Tsakane, realised that his seven-year-old daughter needs his attention, especially now that she has started school.
After losing his job in 2006, Thabo thought the world was not for him to live in sober but he needed something that would keep him high at all times so that he could forget about his sorrows.
He started using nyaope after he was influenced by his friends who were already drug addicts by that time, however Thabo still tried to fight to make ends meet.
He used to stock handbags from Johannesburg and exchange them for gold earrings and neck chains from the people in the township with the intention of making more money.
Things changed when Thabo decided to quit his business and only focus on taking nyaope.
“When I decided to quit the business it was because the profit that I was making from the business was never enough for me to feed my addiction,” said Thabo.
He said he used to spend R90 a day on nyaope.
“Because I was addicted to take the drug at least five times a day, I was forced to buy R30 nyaope three times a day,” Thabo said.
Life became even harder for Thabo following his arrest last year after he was mistaken for a drug lord in Tsakane.
He spent 14 days in the Tsakane police holding cells and was later released with a R600 fine as he was found in possession of nyaope on the day of his arrest.
Thabo said he has been not taking the drug for two months now, something that he says was impossible for him when he was still controlled by the drug.
He revealed that he could not even survive one hour without taking the drug.
Thabo said he is now ready to change his life and that of the people around him.
He left Tsakane yesterday to go to the Boksburg Horizon drug and alcohol centre, all thanks to the Tsakane Youth Development Programme.
Thabo is expected to spend 28 days in the rehab centre and said he will come back to encourage other drug addicts to change their lives by stop taking drugs and start building their future.
