Kush is the drug killing West African youth

Sierra Leone, Guinea, and Liberia are grappling with an increasing number of young people becoming addicted to a substance known as kush or K2. Abuse of the drug has already killed several people in the region.

It’s a substance rolled up and smoked like a cigarette or cannabis. But the illegal synthetic drug known as kush is not to be mistaken with the synonymous marijuana strain. Rising cases in Sierra Leone and Guinea have shown that the drug is dangerous: After a few puffs, the consumer is left stoned, unable to stand upright.

Yet despite the aftereffects — which include falling, body injuries, and loss of self-esteem — users still search for an opportunity to obtain more.

“I’m addicted to a bad system but don’t frequently consume it,” one male kush addict in Sierra Leone’s capital, Freetown, told DW. “Instead, after a whole day, when I return home, I consume it to rest and sleep.”

He admitted that some of his friends had encouraged him to try the illegal drug.

Kush as an alternative to cannabis

“I smoke kush. When there was no kush, I smoked diamba [marijuana],” another user who chose to remain anonymous said.

“So I feel good and even dizzy. After I smoke and feel good, I take my one energy drink. That’s it! That thing requires cold water.”

Social media in Sierra Leone is awash with photos and video clips showing young men, including security officers, caught in embarrassing situations after consuming the drug.

“This newest drug called kush is rampant in Sierra Leonean communities,” Nyamacoro Sarata Silla, a retired nurse, told DW.

“When people have taken it, they present themselves in a very strange way. For example, they can be walking in the middle of the street and suddenly fall asleep standing up.”

Deadly consequences

Another addict struggling to quit the drug said it could lead to health complications — or even death.

“I work in the medical sector. I’m advising the young ones to stop taking it. But, even [for] me, who takes it, it’s not good,” the young hospital worker told DW. He explained that he had seen a young person die after taking kush.

“He had difficulty breathing and was on an oxygen machine, but he didn’t make it. The boy was only 15 years old,” he added.

As Sierra Leone prepares for national polls this year, there are concerns that the rate at which kush is consumed might lead to violence in the upcoming elections. But the Sierra Leone police say they have a proactive plan for that, according to assistant police superintendent, Brima Kamara.