PETALING JAYA, March 4 — To say Malaysia failed to tackle drug abuse — declared the nation’s No 1 enemy 30 years ago — is unjust and prejudiced, says Federal Narcotics Crime Investigation Department acting director Deputy Comm Datuk Haris Wong Abdullah.

Malaysian Drug Prevention Association (Pemadam) president Datuk Mohd Johari Baharum said on Monday Malaysia was losing the fight against substance abuse.

He said Malaysia’s aim of being a drug-free nation this year was the goal of former prime minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

Yesterday, Malay Mail front page carried the story of two seven-year-olds being the country’s youngest drug addicts.

Johari criticised the enforcement authorities who he claimed lacked the seriousness to tackle the problem.

Haris disagreed with Johari’s opinion, saying the blame should not be placed on enforcement bodies “as everyone in awareness, prevention and rehabilitation should also shoulder the burden”.

“It is easy to be negative and simply say we have failed,” he said.

“Winning or losing a battle to declare a drug-free country is subjective. Even superpowers can’t declare themselves free of drugs.

“We cannot play the win or lose game here. Agencies should work together.

“It’s a cycle. Say we nab drug addicts and place them at the rehabilitation centre. When they get out after treatment, society does not accept them. Rehab centres stop monitoring them and they go back to square one. They start taking drugs again and people start blaming the police.”

However, Haris agreed with the suggestion that schools should conduct urine tests and organise campaigns to counter the rising number of school students involved in drugs.

“This is how it should be, suggesting positive ideas on how we can together eradicate the problem instead of just saying we have failed,” he said.

“Rest assured the police never rest on this issue because we, too, value our children.”

The Malay Mail report shared insights on how two boys from Papar and Keningau in Sabah, aged eight and nine, are recovering from their shameful tag as Malaysia’s youngest drug addicts.

National Anti-Drugs Agency (AADK) director-general Datuk Suhaimi Abdullah said the boys got hooked on glue sniffing after they were encouraged to experiment with solvents by their wayward older peers.

They started when they were seven and was admitted to the agency’s cure and care centre in Sabah voluntarily by their parents.