Sharing Education and Learning for Life Foundation has called on the Plateau government to enact a law banning the production, sale and consumption of ‘Goskolo’, a strong local gin widely consumed in the state.

“There is nowhere you have violent conflicts in Plateau that it will not be linked to ‘goskolo’ or drug abuse,” Beji Jibe, the NGO’s programme coordinator, said in an interview on Monday in Jos.

He decried the rise in consumption of the deadly local gin and other illicit substances by many youths in Plateau.

“We are here on a two-day training for CSOs and other stakeholders on policy influence and implementation. We have been doing a lot of work around peace-building, but we noticed a lot of influence by external factors that don’t allow us to gain the impact that we want,” said Mr Jibe. “We felt certain policies need to be in place so that this work can be beneficial to the people.”

According to Mr Jibe, aside from the health implications, a high intake of goskolo constitutes a major setback to the peace-building process in the state.

“One of the major challenges that we face is the issue of drug abuse, and it is directly linked to peace, particularly using the Plateau example. Over the years, in spite of all we suffered on the Plateau because of goskolo, there is no law that prohibits its brewing and consumption,” he noted.

A 60-year-old woman from Tudun Wada in Jos North LGA, Martha Paul, said she lost her son to ‘Goskolo’.

The State Executive Council had in 2016 presented a bill to the Plateau House of Assembly seeking to ban the production, sale and consumption of the local gin, but it was not passed into law by the lawmakers. 

(NAN)