Drugs and graft the main enemies of country: Goh
Published on: Saturday, June 15, 2024
Goh (third right) receiving a commemorative banner from Yong (third left).
Kota Kinabalu: Drugs and corruption are the two main enemies of our country today, said the Federation of Chinese Associations Malaysia (Huazong) President Tan Sri T.C Goh.
He hoped the government, law enforcement agencies and all citizens would pay more attention, to prevent, and respond with greater determination and resolute attitude.
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He also believes that drugs and corruption are not only the two main enemies of our country but also of the international community globally!
Goh, who chairman of the Sabah State Joint Committee of the Malaysia Crime Prevention Foundation (MCPF), was officiating the “Youth Anti-Drug Seminar” jointly organized by the foundation and the Kota Kinabalu Ji Her Charity and Moral Uplifting Society (Ji Her) at Tshung Tsin Secondary School here.
Goh said that in 1983, then Prime Minister Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohammed listed drugs as the nation’s number one enemy and formulated strict drug policies and laws, including the death penalty for drug traffickers.
He said the leaders at the time also hoped that Malaysia could become a “drug-free” country by 2020. Unfortunately, some 51 years later it is still the number one enemy.
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Goh, who is also the President of the Federation of Chinese Associations Sabah (FCAS) and honorary president of Ji Her, said that while Malaysia is rapidly developing, and Sabah is advancing towards prosperity, a hidden and persistent “saboteur” of progress and struggle remains - drugs!
He cited the 2022 National Health and Morbidity Survey stated that 106,000 teenagers in Malaysia have used drugs.
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The number of people arrested for various drug-related activities last year increased by 9.5 per cent.
Zainudin nonetheless noted that the number of arrests under the Dangerous Drugs (Special Preventive Measures) Act 1985 dropped from 1,261 in the previous year to 1,012 last year (a decrease of 23.6 per cent).
This was mainly because the Narcotics Crime Investigation Department focused on higher-penalty drug activities. Zainudin also disclosed that the police seized many types of drugs during operations, and between 2020 and 2023, they dismantled 70 drug manufacturing centres.
Goh went on to note that Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of the Cabinet Committee on the Eradication of Drugs, Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid, also revealed that between 2021 and 2023, the number of drug abusers and addicts, as well as those using prohibited substances, increased in various states.
The National Anti-Drug Agency last year admitted and rehabilitated 75,294 addicts, 24.1 per cent (18,115 people) of whom had family members involved in drug abuse, indicating that family members are also a factor.
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