Mairungi: A banned drug flourishing in Arua

A stroll in the villages of Ociba coast on the outskirts of Arua Town is a revelation that rolls into the crispy khat (mairungi) business at the heart of West Nile.

Youth, as early as 8am, start the day picking mairungi from plantations or backyard gardens.
A stop over by the roadside scares away the youth as they curiously ask “are you policemen?”
A “no” puts them back to the job with some filling up mugs, polythene bags and baskets. Some feed straight at the source.

Weak laws, one would say, provides a fertile ground for the business, which though rated as a health hazard continues to flourish.

Much of the mairungi in West Nile, particularly in Arua, is grown in Ociba and Maracha with eight households out of 10 in the areas growing the all-weather crop.

Not aware of any dangers
In Arua Town, youth feast on the leaves harvested from the crop, oblivious to the potential dangers associated with it.

Sadam Ali, 28, who we find at Adumi road in Arua Town chews mairungi on a daily basis on the assumption that it gives him energy.

“My friends told me chewing mairungi gives strength. The first time I tried it I felt dizzy. However, it is now the sweetest thing I know. For 12 years, it has become part of me,” he beams with a smile amid jiggles.

Of course, he cannot prove that it brings energy but insists he has drawn energy from the green leaves, especially when he has low days.

In 1980, the World Health Organisation classified khat as a drug that can produce mild to moderate psychological dependence (less than tobacco or alcohol).

The leaves are chewed together with gum to cut back on the bitter taste.

Arua is a hub that traffics the ‘drug’ into South Sudan and DR Congo. This is encouraged by the porous borders, unemployment and widespread poverty between Uganda and the two countries.
Juliet Adiru, 30, solely depends on selling mairungi from where she draws an income to look after her family.

She understands the trade and knows that the high quality leaves come from Maracha District in Okokoro. On a monthly basis, Adiru says, she earns Shs350,000 and if government has any plan to ban it then it should put in place an alternative.

But beyond the assumption that it brings energy and is a source of income, many who chew the leaves say it keeps them awake, suppresses fatigue and it brightens up one’s mood.
The ‘drug’, which is sourced from parts of Arua, Maracha and Koboko districts is popular among truck drivers, boda boda riders and night duty workers.

Women are the most active in the trade but male youth take the trophy for the chewing role.
Khat is an outlawed drug, whose growth, was banned under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (Control) Act, 2014.

However, farmers under Mairungi Growers and Traders Association recently protested the law saying they were not consulted.

In a recent interview, the head of the Psychiatric Ward at Arua hospital, Alex Adaku, said: “Our major problem is the production of mairungi that is available in almost every homestead.”
Majority of consumers of the banned drug, Adaku said are youth between 23 and 35 years but teenagers between 11 and 15 years have also been sucked in.

The banned drug, according to Swaleh Buga, the Arua Hill Division councillor, is dangerous and has been one of the ways thorough which Arua has lost a lot of youth productivity.
In 2011, Arua District passed an ordinance that outlawed the sale and chewing of mairungi, instituting a fine not exceeding two currency points or community work not exceeding three months or both.

However, the implementation has failed and youth who are arrested are charged with being a public nuisance or idle and disorderly.

The “drug”, apart from Arua, is readily available in different parts of the country and is widely grown in Butambala and parts of Mpigi and Gomba districts.

While presiding over a function in Butambala District, where the crop is predominantly grown recently, Joseph Kawuki, the Buganda kingdom junior local government minister, urged people in the area to grow mairungi because of its commercial benefits.

Josephine Angucia, the north western police spokesperson, says the problem is compounded by the lack of willingness to implement laws banning mairungi activates.

Mairugi consumers, according to World Health Organisation, can suffer a number of complications, including tuberculosis, anemia and impotence.

In 2008, Yumbe District council passed a resolution to stop mairungi activities and several youth were arrested in the process.

However, police records indicate none was convicted or charge with breaking the law.
According to the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (Control) Act, 2014, a person found in possession of narcotic drugs or psychotropic substance is liable on conviction to a fine not less than five hundred currency points (Shs10m) or three times the market value of the drug or to imprisonment not less than two years, but not exceeding 10 years.

The drug is also popular in other countries, including Ethiopia, Somalia, Djibouti, Eritrea and parts of the Arabian Peninsula.
It is also grown in Kenya, Tanzania, DR Congo, Malawi, Zimbabwe, Zambia and South Africa.

Khat as medicine

Khat has also been found to be used as a depression and fatigue reliever as well as treating obesity, stomach ulcers, and male infertility.
It is also used to lower the need for food and sleep, decrease sexual desires, and increase aggression.
The World Health Organisation lists khat as a drug that creates “dependence” in people, meaning it produces a continuing desire to keep using it.
In Somalia, civilian and military use of khat has been blamed for fueling civil war, draining the nation’s economy, and undermining international relief efforts.

Effects
Being classified as an addictive drug, mairungi has the potential to cause incalculable harm to society economically, socially and healthwise. This thus underlines the need for children, families, peers, teachers and communities to speak about the dangers of drug abuse.

Tit bits about khat
Banned drug. Khat is an outlawed drug in a number of countries, including US, Canada and much of Europe in countries such as Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Ireland, France, Germany, Switzerland - but not the UK Causes excitement. Khat contains a stimulant, which is said to cause excitement, loss of appetite and euphoria. Khat consumption induces excitement, similar to that conferred by strong coffee. Individuals become very talkative under the influence of the plant.

Effects. The use of khat could results into constipation and dilated pupils and could result into increased heart beat and blood pressure.

History.

According to some sources, khat was first grown in Ethiopia but was later introduced to Yemen in the 15th century. However, it was later introduced into parts of Africa such as Djibouti, and Somalia. In the Arabian Peninsula, khat-chewing has a long history as a social custom dating back thousands of years.