THE Central Drug Authority has warned Parliament that a wave of new narcotics are flooding the country - with two being taken regularly by children on their way to school.
The authority's acting chairman, Dr Ray Eberlein, told Parliament's social development committee yesterday that Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal were awash with nicotine-rich "Kuber", which is labelled as a breath freshener and sold in local shops in plastic sachets.
He said the authority was still waiting for the results of a drug analysis. But it has reportedly been banned in Malawi because it is highly addictive.
In Limpopo children were plucking the ephedrine-based khat - a flowering plant originally found in East Africa - and chewing it on the way to school.
The drug was also vacuum packed and transported to Cape Town in refrigerated trucks to be sold there.
Tik was rapidly spreading from Cape Town to Northern Cape.
There was also a new Zambuk or Vaseline-based lip ice containing cannabis or cocaine, which is sniffed or smeared on the lips to produce a high, he said.
Eberlein warned that the authority had recently detected a 61% increase in the growth of opium-producing poppies in Afghanistan.
"So we are expecting an increase in opium on our shores and a drastic reduction in the price."
With many drug users earning less than R1,000 a month, "economic necessity dictates that drug users consume whatever they can get their hands on".
He said the problem of alcoholism had worsened since March this year, when a survey by the authority put the cost of damage caused by alcohol at R78-billion a year.
The authority was now working on an unconfirmed figure of R130-billion a year - 6.45% of the gross domestic product.
The average South African drinks one small bakkie load worth of drinks a year, or 20.1 litres of pure alcohol, he said. "If we had a world boozing cup, South Africa wouldn't even have to practice."
With 7,000 people killed by drunken drivers or from driving while drunk every year, Eberlein warned binge drinking was a serious problem.
About 37% of the population drink from early Friday afternoon until Monday morning, staying drunk all weekend.
"The worst of it all is on Monday when 10% of the people on the road are likely to be drunk," Eberlein said.
SA being flooded with new drugs
THE Central Drug Authority has warned Parliament that a wave of new narcotics are flooding the country - with two being taken regularly by children on their way to school.
The authority's acting chairman, Dr Ray Eberlein, told Parliament's social development committee yesterday that Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal were awash with nicotine-rich "Kuber", which is labelled as a breath freshener and sold in local shops in plastic sachets.
He said the authority was still waiting for the results of a drug analysis. But it has reportedly been banned in Malawi because it is highly addictive.
In Limpopo children were plucking the ephedrine-based khat - a flowering plant originally found in East Africa - and chewing it on the way to school.
The drug was also vacuum packed and transported to Cape Town in refrigerated trucks to be sold there.
Tik was rapidly spreading from Cape Town to Northern Cape.
There was also a new Zambuk or Vaseline-based lip ice containing cannabis or cocaine, which is sniffed or smeared on the lips to produce a high, he said.
Eberlein warned that the authority had recently detected a 61% increase in the growth of opium-producing poppies in Afghanistan.
"So we are expecting an increase in opium on our shores and a drastic reduction in the price."
With many drug users earning less than R1,000 a month, "economic necessity dictates that drug users consume whatever they can get their hands on".
He said the problem of alcoholism had worsened since March this year, when a survey by the authority put the cost of damage caused by alcohol at R78-billion a year.
The authority was now working on an unconfirmed figure of R130-billion a year - 6.45% of the gross domestic product.
The average South African drinks one small bakkie load worth of drinks a year, or 20.1 litres of pure alcohol, he said. "If we had a world boozing cup, South Africa wouldn't even have to practice."
With 7,000 people killed by drunken drivers or from driving while drunk every year, Eberlein warned binge drinking was a serious problem.
About 37% of the population drink from early Friday afternoon until Monday morning, staying drunk all weekend.
"The worst of it all is on Monday when 10% of the people on the road are likely to be drunk," Eberlein said.
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