‘Inabah’ concept helps to reduce number of drug addicts — Ahmad Zahid
BAGAN DATUK: The use of religious and spiritual approach, or ‘inabah’, in the treatment of drug addicts at the country’s Cure and Care Rehabilitation Centres (CCRC) has succeeded in reducing the number of drug addicts by 16 per cent last year.
Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said the ‘inabah’ method could provide an alternative to the conventional treatment for drug addiction, including the use of metadon, which had side effects.
“I want to say thank you to AADK (National Antidrug Agency) for its new drug rehabilitation approach, especially through the religious approach using ‘inabah’.
“It’s a rehabilitation treatment not only for Muslim drug addicts, we also have for Hindus, Buddhists and Christians using their respective religious approach,” he added.
On the rehabilitation approach using metadon, he said, it helped, but not completely.
Ahmad Zahid said this when closing the ‘Negaraku, My Responsibility’ programme here yesterday, which was also attended by Barisan Nasional (BN) candidates Datuk Khairuddin Tarmizi and Datuk Shahrul Zaman Yahya, who are contesting the Hutan Melintang and Rungkup state seat, respectively, in the Bagan Datuk parliamentary constituency.
Ahmad Zahid, who is also Home Minister, said based on statistics by AADK, the number of drug addicts in the country reduced to 25,922 people in 2017, from 30,844 people in 2016.
The deputy prime minister, who is defending the Bagan Datuk parliamentary seat in this general election, said he was determined to rid the drug menace in Bagan Datuk and turned it into a zerodrug district.
Based on statistics by AADK, the number of new drug addicts was reduced to 18,440 people last year, from 22,923 people in 2016, while for recurrent drug addicts, the number was reduced by 5.54 per cent, to 7,482 addicts in 2017, from 7,921 in 2016. — Bernama