 Drug abuse is destroying the lives of our children. These were the words of the former First Lady of Lagos State at the grand finale of the second edition of the inter-secondary school debate compensation organized by the Nigerian Youth Parliament Lagos Central Senatorial District at Yosa Local Government Area. Our correspondent Paul George reports. Drug abuse is emulating excessive and negative use of drugs for non-medical people in spite of social, psychological and physical problems. Gathered here in this hall are predominantly students and youth who have come for the grand finale of the inter-secondary school debate competition. The chief host, Honourable Gwalahon Yishaw, praised the participating students in January. He says in order to sustain the fight against drug abuse, the advocacy has to be taken to schools. One of the main ways of handling drug, keeping a drug-free environment is advocacy. Let them have places they can talk about. Kids cannot talk to their parents at home. So they come to the school environment. But the best thing a man can eventually do is they should be a counsellor in every school that we have, every public school, or one, maybe one to five or six. They go around different days of the week to ensure that they talk to the students. As a way of encouraging the students who are aspiring for greatness, the keynote speaker, former First Lady of Lagos State, Abimbola Fashola, warned the students to eschew drug abuse. All we are calling here and saying here is that let's stop it. It's destroying our future. It's destroying our children. And it's not making us be at where we should be. So it's a welcome development for us to be able to at least capture them while they are still young so that they won't get out of our hands. And let's continue to use that God-given talent in us. The gifts in us to make our country a better place. A member representing Lagos Central Sinutera District, Nigerian Youth Parliament, Honourable Abdul-Mumin Eddidi, collaborated this view. We are saying prisons are congested already. If you look at the issue of drug abuse, most of the people who peddle drugs don't use drugs. They are business people. It is the victim. So if you are sentencing the victims to jail, it is as good as you not putting a square peg in the round hole. So we are advising that they should sentence those of them that they find peddling and consuming at the same time to community services while those of them who are just victims, they should sentence them to rehabilitation. The youth parliamentarian was glad that the students didn't disappoint in their delivery. He spoke alongside others. We are getting the students to own the conversation about drug abuse and I'm sure you all saw the discussion they had. Very fruitful, very beautiful deliberation. So that's what it's about. And from there, these people now are drug-free school advocates in their schools. We will take it off from here to groom them, to cancel them and to prepare them for the real task. It's our younger ones. We don't have much to put in, but keep it up. That is what I would say. It's very, very impressive to connect our younger generation. Thank you very much. One of the students said in the debate, said that, you know, whenever you are hooked on drugs, it's probably because of your distorted thinking. So you see everything around you as being negative, catastrophic, and you think that the only way out is drugs. But what I've seen here today, I am very, very proud. The winners of the debate competition were full of joy for the opportunity. I feel good and happy. I would like to tell them, thank you. God bless you guys for providing such an opportunity for us to debate about drug abuse. The feeling is immeasurable. I can't say, I can't depict the feeling I'm feeling right now. Like I'm just feeling excited. My principal always says, nothing is impossible. Everything is possible. So I just put in my best and leave the rest to God. The high point of the event was the presentation of cash and laptops for the winner and other prizes for the runners-up. Hello, hope you enjoyed the news. Please do subscribe to our YouTube channel and don't forget to hit the notification button so you get notified about fresh news updates.