In the heart of Ikeja’s bustling commercial center, the Ipodo community teems with life. Traders shout, buses blare, and bodies bustle through the market maze. Yet behind the vibrancy lies a quiet war being fought by youth trapped in the grip of drugs.
A community elder, interviewed by postgraduate students from the Nigerian Institute of Journalism, painted a bleak picture. “We see them every day, boys with empty eyes, girls slurring under bridges. They’re not criminals. They’re casualties,” he said, shaking his head slowly.
This year’s World Drug Day, observed globally on June 26, focuses on breaking the cycle of organised crime and calls for systemic solutions grounded in justice, prevention, education, and care. But in Ipodo, residents say, the cycle isn’t just organised, it’s ordinary.
PILLS, POWDERS, AND PAINS: DRUG USE ON THE RISE
From tramadol to methamphetamine, cannabis to a deadly synthetic substance known locally as Colorado, drugs have woven themselves into the daily reality of many young residents.
A meat vendor described how teenage customers, still in school uniform, slip into the market in mufti to buy drugs during school hours. “They disguise themselves as traders. But we know what they’re here for,” he revealed.
A community youth, who requested anonymity, told the NIJ team that Colorado is the most abused drug in the area. “We don’t know what’s inside. Some say it’s used to embalm corpses. But people still take it,” he said.
TRIGGERS AND TRAPS: WHY YOUTHS USE IT?
When asked why drug abuse had become so widespread, some residents pointed to broken homes, poverty, peer pressure, and joblessness. A former addict, now sober, said he started with cigarettes at age 14. “At first, it was fun. Then it became survival,” he said.
The Nigerian Institute of Journalism students found that many youths are unaware of the health hazards of their substance use. “They think they’re just getting high. But they’re dying slowly,” said Gloria Ifeoluwa, one of the campaign researchers.
BRIBES, BARS, AND BROKEN SYSTEMS: THE POLICING PARADOX
Attempts by law enforcement to combat drug activity in Ipodo have largely been unsuccessful, residents said, due to systemic corruption. “The police come in, arrest a few addicts, and then release those who can pay. The poor ones are dumped in jail,” said a local opinion leader.
This revolving-door justice system does nothing to address addiction, noting that victims come out worse, angrier, and more hooked than before. “It’s a cycle,” the opinion leader further stated.
DRUMS, DRAMAS, AND DIALOGUE: DEVCOM STEPS IN
In response to this deepening crisis, postgraduate students from NIJ’s Development Communication programme launched a campaign to educate, empower, and engage the Ipodo community.
Rather than rely on leaflets or lectures, the team used a culturally grounded approach, voice-over messages in Pidgin, and also used branded fabrics.
Through rigorous audience analysis, the team discovered that most drug users in the area are either school dropouts, touts, low-income earners or teenagers from broken homes. A few high-income individuals also discreetly order drugs for home delivery.
“We found that most of them are not responsive to formal media. They don’t trust radio or TV, they trust stories, songs, and sincerity,” said Gbadebo Adewumi, another campaigner.
The campaign also exposed the dangerous geography of the area. “Some drug dens are off-limits, even to victims of theft,” reported Olatunji Afolake. “If you chase a thief into one of those hideouts, you might not come back out,” she said.
BREAKING THE CYCLE STARTS WITH LISTENING
This year’s World Drug Day is a global call to action, not just against drugs, but against the conditions that feed them: injustice, inequality, ignorance.
And in the streets of Ipodo, a group of journalism students dared to listen. Dared to speak. Dared to hope, as their branded shirts proclaimed during their campaign:
“No Drugs, Your Life Matters..”
A MESSAGE TO POLICYMAKERS AND THE PUBLIC
The young people of Ipodo don’t need more raids; they need rehabilitation. They don’t need more punishment, they need purpose and a system that sees them not as statistics, but as sons and daughters of a nation that claims to care, because drug abuse doesn’t just destroy individuals, it also fuels:
📍Theft and violent crime
📍Prostitution and cultism
📍School dropouts and internet fraud
📍Mental illness and suicide
And this year’s World Drug Day theme— “Break the Cycle: #StopOrganizedCrime” is not just a slogan, it’s a blueprint for national healing, calling on religious institutions, community organisations and Government bodies to go beyond arresting users, but:
📍Invest in youth education and skills development
📍Create accessible mental health care
📍Disrupt the power of drug lords and corrupt enablers
📍Support grassroots campaigns, similar to the one that NIJ’s Development Communication project inspired, because until every youth sees a future beyond the haze of Colorado, we haven’t begun the fight.
NB: This campaign report was compiled by Jimoh Elizabeth Oluwaseyi, with voice-over production by Babatunde Gloria Ifeoluwa and Odusina Oluwadurotimi Michael, and field interviews conducted by Gbadebo Adewumi A. and Olatunji Afolake O.
All are Postgraduate Diploma (Full-Time) students, 2023/2024 session, enrolled in MAS 706: Development Communication, under the supervision of Mrs. Maureen Poopola, at the Nigerian Institute of Journalism (NIJ), Lagos.
READ MORE: The Silent Struggle: How Drug Abuse is Stealing the Future of Today’s Youth
