Abuja: The Nigerian Army Officers’ Wives Association (NAOWA) has sensitised wives of military personnel on drug abuse prevention, urging them to strengthen family values and create safe home environments to protect children from substance abuse. The President of NAOWA, Dr. Safiyyah Shaibu, made the call at the association’s National Executive Meeting in Abuja during a sensitisation programme on drug prevention, treatment, and care.
According to News Agency of Nigeria, Shaibu stated that the programme was organised to equip members with knowledge that would help them protect their families and communities from the growing threat of drug abuse. She urged members to apply the knowledge gained and share it with women in their respective chapters. Leadership, she noted, should be guided by integrity and selfless service, with resolutions from the executive meeting translating into practical programmes with measurable impact.
The association plans to strengthen its multipurpose cooperative society to provide members with greater opportunities for savings, investments, and economic empowerment. Shaibu described the drug prevention lecture by experts from the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) as timely, emphasizing that mothers and wives have a critical role in recognising early warning signs of substance abuse and supporting affected persons.
During the lecture, Assistant Commander-General of Narcotics, NDLEA, Mr. Mohammed Ibrahim, warned that drug abuse had become a major threat to families, particularly within military communities. He stressed that the family remains the first school for every child, highlighting that children learn more from the behaviour of parents than from verbal instructions.
Ibrahim explained that parents must intentionally create positive home environments built on love, discipline, communication, and moral values to prevent substance abuse. He pointed out that many young people are introduced to drugs through peer pressure, poor parenting, cultural practices, trauma, depression, and easy access to illicit substances. Noting Nigeria’s challenges with drug production, consumption, and trafficking, he urged parents to monitor their children’s activities, know their friends, engage in regular conversations, and set clear family rules.
He advised against leaving children unsupervised on digital devices, as social media and negative online influences have become gateways to drug abuse. Ibrahim stated that substance dependence is a medical condition rather than a moral failure, adding that treatment and recovery are possible with early intervention and family support.
He called on mothers to build resilience in their children by teaching responsibility, confidence, contentment, and the ability to resist negative peer influence. According to him, preventing drug abuse is more effective than treating addiction after it has taken root. “Resilience is not just the ability to overcome challenges; it is the strength to prevent them,” he said.