Materia Medica Malaysiana

Almost 100 Per Cent Drug Users Male

KUALA LUMPUR, May 19 (Bernama) -- Out of 6,910 drug addicts identified nationwide between January and March this year, 98 per cent were male, according to the statistics provided by the National Anti-Drug Agency.
Sixty-one per cent were Malays, 76.2 per cent youths with the majority aged between 19 and 39, while 78.8 per cent had at least completed their Form 3 education.
About 88.2 per cent were employed, with the majority being labourers, and 62.5 per cent were heroin and morphine addicts. About half of them admitted that their involvement in drugs was due to peer pressure.
Out of the 6,910, the highest number of addicts were from Kuala Lumpur (1,178), followed by Sabah (1,165), Penang (1,155), Johor (746) and Kedah (710).
Although it is a decrease from the 11,496 drug addicts detected in the corresponding period last year, the number of addicts in Sabah, Kedah and Perlis this year had increased the said.
The agency also said that out of the total, 3,241 were new addicts while the rest were relapse cases. However, the number of relapse cases have dropped by 39.9 per cent compared with last year.
Meanwhile, the police and customs caught 12,080 drug offenders under the Dangerous Drugs Act between January and March this year, 34.3 per cent (8,998) increase compared with the corresponding period last year.
Drug seizures made within the same period this year included 26.6kg of heroin, ganja (360kg), opium (0.6kg), syabu (6.9kg), codeine (4561.55l), ecstasy pills (73,159) and psychotropic pills (143,230).
On treatment and rehabilitation, 9,153 drug addicts were treated at 28 drug rehabilitation centres between March 28 and April 3 this year, the agency said.
Meanwhile, 276 inmates of the Kajang Prison who are classified as hardcore addicts are undergoing rehabilitation and treatment at the prison's drug rehabilitation centre.