Reggae artist Sparklyn Black, whose real name is Muhammed Sillah, has sounded an alarm on the rise of a deadly crack drug that is wreaking havoc among young people, causing a growing number of users to go mentally insane.

Sparklyn Black, known for his advocacy for a just society, has launched a new campaign targeting drug addicts as part of his efforts to restore the already shattered lives of drug users, helping them reintegrate into society.

“The only thing eating us now is the drug, and it’s affecting the healthy breed of young people. There is a new drug in town called crack,” he tells Coffee Times.

According to him, the crack drug has been destroying the lives of dozens of people since 2021, prompting him to call for collective action to curb its spread and use in the country.

“I have never seen a crackhead in my life until 2021. If you go to Kololi, you will see at least ten women who have already lost it. They are totally mad, and we have never seen that in The Gambia. There are so many hard drugs in the streets of The Gambia, and this is a concern,” he said.

“Crack is cheaper than weed, and that’s alarming. It can destroy you in less than a week. You don’t need to take a crack for a month to see the effects. And the number of young men who have gone mad and cannot be brought back into society is growing,” he added.

He urged the government to take immediate action against the new drug, warning that failure to act now could gravely affect the country.

“This drug is spreading, and what happens is when we have so many crackheads on the streets, they will eventually introduce guns. That’s the plan. The guns will come after we all turn into crackheads, and at that time, the government won’t be able to manage the situation,” he warned.

By Adama Makasuba