Courtesy The Daily Mirror

Colombo, Nov. 25 (Daily Mirror) – President Anura Kumara Dissanayake has instructed the Ministry of Justice to draft new legislation enabling the immediate destruction of seized dangerous drugs at the point of detection. 

The directive was issued this morning (25) during the second session of the ‘A Nation United’ National Steering Council, held at the Presidential Secretariat to advance efforts to eradicate the drug menace.

Addressing the gathering, the President stressed that combating narcotics requires a dual focus—both on preventing the circulation of illegal drugs and on rehabilitating those suffering from addiction. He noted that public views on rehabilitation vary widely, underscoring the need for a unified, scientifically grounded national strategy involving both state and non-state actors.

Under the proposed legal framework, a Magistrate would be required to visit the location of a drug seizure to inspect the stock, after which the Government Analyst would collect samples. The remaining drugs could then be destroyed immediately. Work on drafting the law is already underway, and the President directed officials to expedite the process ahead of the March deadline.

He also highlighted the need to strengthen rehabilitation efforts by developing a trained human resource pool and instructed authorities to fast-track the recruitment of permanent and temporary Government Analysts to fill existing vacancies in the department.

Meanwhile, a nationwide awareness programme under the ‘Quit – A Nation United’ initiative will be held on December 6 and 7 across all District and Divisional Secretariats. The President further called on all government institutions to take administrative measures to certify themselves as drug-free as part of the broader national campaign.