Loss of recreational facilities in Hwange blamed on the surge of drug abuse among youths

Without jobs and a place to relieve the economic stress, young people are turning into abusing drugs and other substances. Without urgent action, the future is bleak.

Onita Sibanda

Hwange – Rachel Mwembe looks at the swimming pool near the Hwange Bus Termini, it is now deserted, no water in the pool she is further saddened by how every minute illegal fuel dealers come to serve their clients. The other side is used by welders.

The pool used to be one of the many recreational facilities in Hwange. The town was a hub of all sorts of sporting and recreational activities from tennis, hockey, swimming and golf. Only football and netball have survived the heat and shift of time but the hype is descending.

Residents speaking to this publication said, lack of recreational facilities and unemployment contributes to the erosion of social order in the once former vibrant coal mining settlement. Youths have resorted to drug and substance abuse as a way to escape from the economic related stresses.

“When we grew up recreation meant learning new skills and making friends, we discovered what gave us joy and enjoyed life. We engaged more with one another. It was rare to hear of drug and substance abuse. But now adays, it’s rampant,” said Mwembe a resident.

Mwembe is worried about how youths without jobs are spending their time. Recreational facilities are vandalised and deserted. She says this is the cause of all delinquencies among youths.

The most abused drugs and substances are crystal meth known as ‘mutoriro’, marijuana and illegal alcohol which is smuggled in Zimbabwe.

“This is not the Hwange I grew up in. Young people are fast turning into drugs because the whole situation is stressing. Most of the recreational facilities have been turned into markets and night clubs. I think the whole world is becoming obsessed with sex, alcohol and vulgar music, and we are not an exception,” said Anna Mpofu, a resident.

Kuziwa Bhiri is a counsellor who helps people in Hwange including survivors of drug and substance abuse.  As cases rise, he is always busy, spending most of his time raising awareness on the dangers od drug and substance abuse. He said drug abuse have become a serious problem within Hwange.

“Most people in drug abuse end up committing suicide because the way they perceive things is different after taking drugs. It is sad that some parents introduce the substances to their children at a young age. Drug abuse bring problems from family to the national level,” said Bhiri.

Bhiri said drug addicts are usually helped in rehabilitation centres. However, such centres are few in Zimbabwe.

Speaking on the Weekly guest at Besana last year, Mertha Motema Nyamande, a psychotherapist said rehabilitation is very effective if used properly, with a clear understanding of the stages required for someone to go through rehabilitation.

“Firstly, rehabilitation is not a forced process. You can take a donkey to the river, but you cannot make it drink. the same concept applies here. The mistake most parents make is that they wait till the problem becomes critical when the user is now aggressive and violent, essentially they wait till the crisis phase,” said Nyamande, “What is done at crisis stage is not rehabilitation, but containment for safety, while in that containment, they are not really properly detoxed because they start to get treated with other drugs, so its simply swapping one drug with another.”

Read also: https://thebesanamail.com/2023/07/06/childrens-mental-well-being-and-the-role-of-psychotherapy/

Hwange Cricket club is one of the recreational facility which was turned into a pub and grill centre. The facility used to accommodate young people with interest in the game but now on weekends hundreds of cars are parked as people have funny and drinks, successfully relegating local children and youths to coal dust infested townships.

Cosmas Ndlovu, a community elder said Hwange flourished since in the 1950’s but started to deteriorate in the mid 2000s, gradually until the lost of all its social fabric.

“It was not just sports, there were environment clubs, religious institutions were very active and instilled discipline compared to nowadays,” said Ndlovu.

“Young people would be trained, there were people who were employed to make those institutions busy. The likes of John Nkonde and Adija just to name a few. They were meant to ensure that the youths were meaningfully occupied. It was rare to see young people engaging in the abuse drugs,” added Ndlovu.

Recreational facilities in communities create a conducive environment and platform for networking through social activities and gives people a rest from their busy schedules.

Local authorities have not given up seeing the extent of the drug and substance abuse scourge. Using the available facilities, local leaders are promoting football and netball to give relief, talent scouting and an opportunity for the young people to excel in these disciplines.

Samuel Tshuma, councillor for ward 10 said they have created these facilities so that youths are always occupied.

“We are planning of doing another project that will sustain our youths. Our committee is working on it, when the initiative comes out we will share the details with the community,” he said.

Hwange Colliery Company Limited was not available when they were contacted for a comment.