EDITOR – Nyaope is a demonic South African drug that eats away human dignity and the gains of our freedom and democracy.
It eats the soul and the pulse of the South African youth in particular.
It kills the aspiration of these young one who are the future of our democracy, our future leaders, business leaders and the necessary workforce to sustain this country.
The more the young are addicted to this drug, the more bleak the future of this country.
Thus, we are labouring in vain as the ones who are supposed to take over from our current crop of leaders.
Where is the future in all this?
The truth is no one buys a ticket to hell knowing there is a point of return, some got hooked to this drug by default, I was trying and the cookie crumbled, I bought marijwana to find it was dipped in Nyaope.
Some are victims of domestic abuse, the father in his drunk state beats the poor mother and when the child challenges him, the father kicks him out of the house.
Thus becoming homeless.
Therefore there are many reasons why our youth find themselves being ravished by this scourge.
Yours is one among many.
As a former street kid myself, I have seen helpless mothers searching for their loved ones in the unholy streets of Hillbrow, the Den of Darkness.
I have seen both poor and rich parents break down in tears.
When they finally see their children they gave birth to, they weep in disbelieve, some break down in front of me.
Is this the future we want or hope for?
Family is the bedrock of the society, this means it is family that prepares children for a greater association in the society.
As an African Proverbs states, “It takes a village to raise a child and it takes a child to awaken the village.”
Who will awaken the village when all is lost, when drugs are being given to our youth right under our nose?
It is only when the last fish is dead in the river that we will know we should have acted responsibly. It is until the last drop of water from the tap that we will know we should acted with caution.
Sustainable development says we must use sparingly and save for the succeeding generation.
Sustainable development is not only about resources but majorly about human resource.
If this not be the case then who are we saving these resources for if there are no human beings to use them?
The human resource we refer to is the youth of our country that is majorly affected.
Our Constitution provides for Right to Dignity.
However our community has rejected the youth in drug bondage as lesser human beings, thus in direct violation of the Constitution we live for.
This is a direct challenge to our human rights record and the spiritual beings that we are.
This means Nyaope is in direct violation of our Constitution, particularly the Bill of Rights.
It violates the Right to Health, the Right to Dignity, the Right Social Development and Sustainability, Right to Education among others.
This means our Socio-Economic Rights are meaningless if we do not protect them in relation to our youth, the succeeding generation.
This drug not only eats the poor, in the streets there are university drop outs, out of frustration they turn to Nyaope as the future seems bleak without a degree.
I watched too many great minds die, I witnessed the death of an LLB graduate die.
“Nyaope has finally robbed South African a legal mind and a future Constitutional Court Judge,” said a friend from the streets in his dying hour.
This boy loved the late Arthur Chakalson.
He was his role model.
He said to me, “At least I am going to meet my role model in heaven and he will mentor me there.”
This is one case among many I have witnessed.
These kids are refused treatment in hospital because they stink, they do not wash, they are robbers and criminals.
My questions is if a mother knew beforehand that she was going to give birth to a robber, would she then terminate that pregnancy?
Just like a parent never knows that his child will one day lead the nation.
Jesus came for the poor, the heartbroken, those neglected by society, those who are not at peace with themselves, those who need salvation more than ever.
I have no doubt in my mind that if Jesus Christ were to come now the first people he would go to are Nyaope addicts, as Nyaope undermines His Father’s Kingdom who art in Heaven.
Not the Bishops, not the Popes, not the priests, not the affluent class but those who touch him most.
If indeed Christ was about caring, loving, welcoming and all-embracing, why then do we neglect these Nyaope children as though they are the outcasts in the Kingdom of God?
“Thou shall not judge” is what Christ asked us to do, for we will be judged by the same measure we use against others.
No wonder I lived with children of prominent priests in the streets, yet their fathers preach a theologically correct gospel without actions.
Is your religion like Christ or does it feed the belly of a priest?
Christ fed multitudes with five loaves and two fish.
Yet our current Disciples of Christ, the Shepherds of the Kingdom, are fatter that the sheep.
We therefore call upon the Nation of South Africa to search deep down in their heart and ask themselves if this is normal?
Our governments spend more money and time fighting unnecessary legal and personal battles at the expense of the poor taxpayers, they further use the security services instead of channelling all those energies to the welfare of those they claim to represent.
Our forefathers of Democracy and Human Rights and Human Dignity are tossing and turning in their graves.
They are not at peace as our actions do not give them rest. This is why they curse their once-loved parties or liberation movements to their face and reduce them to our current oppressors.
Franz Fanon says, “Our liberators of yesterday are our oppressors of today.”
Should we then go back to Egypt since Moses our liberator has turned against us?
Mene Mene Tekel Ursphasin, “God has numbered your Kingdom, and finished it. You have been weighed in the balance and found wanting. Your Kingdom has been divided and given to the Medes and Persians,” Daniel 5 verse 24.
“South Africa we love you…oh our beautiful land..lets show the whole world we can bring peace in our Land”
This was a peace song at the height of turmoil in the country during the 1992 political unrest.
It is time we show ourselves we care by caring for helpless Nyaope addicts.
When the great Argentinian footballer Diego Maradona was rejected by the world as a drug addict, it was the late Fidel Castro who said, “Enough is enough,” and healed Maradonna.
If we loved Castro so much let us walk in his footsteps as we walk in Jesus’ footsteps.
Prince Moloi,
Phomolong.
