Police delays slow NPAZ in clearing drug cases 

THE National Prosecuting Authority of Zimbabwe (NPAZ) has revealed that it is struggling to clear drug cases because the police are taking too long to provide results for sampled tests.

The drugs are tested by Criminal Investigations Department (CID) Narcotics.

According to the annual 2023 Prosecutor General Loice Matanda Moyo’s report which was tabled in Parliament recently for debate, the prosecuting authority had a backlog of more than 9000 drug-related cases.

 “The National Prosecuting Authority acknowledges the importance of effectively prosecuting drug offences. While we have made strides in that area, a current challenge affecting prosecution timelines is the time taken to receive results of drug sample analysis for the CID narcotics unit,” she said.

Matanda-Moyo said the NPAZ was actively engaging CID Narcotics to explore solutions that can expedite the testing process.

She reported a backlog reduction of drug abuse-related cases from 16 373 in 2022 to about 9 000 in 2023.

Statistics show that many recent admissions to Zimbabwe’s mental health hospitals are a result of drug abuse.

Statistics from Sally Mugabe Central Hospital Psychiatric Unit indicate that there has been an increase in drug use related admissions in their unit, especially since the COVID-19 period.

Parirenyatwa Marimba, the medical superintendent for Zimbabwe’s second-biggest mental health hospital Ngomahuru in Masvingo, said 80% of admissions were juvenile and adult patients presenting with drug-induced psychosis.

According to a World Health Organisation 2019 report, Zimbabwe has the highest rate of 15 to 19-year-olds engaging in heavy “episodic drinking” in Africa, with 70,7% of males and 55,5% of females participating. Unfortunately, this age group is also heavily involved in drug dealing and use.

The world health body estimates that in 2019, about 180 000 people lost their precious lives due to drug use disorders, while substance use was responsible for 11,8 million deaths in 2017, both directly and indirectly.