By ADELEKE ADESANYA
As Nigeria continues to record increase in the number of suicide cases, mental health experts have attributed the incidence to failures on the part of the government, financial institutions and corporate organisations that have failed to address the problem.
This is coming as parents and religious leaders have been charged with the roles of monitoring, mentoring and counseling the youths, who are largely prone to such acts.
The experts, who spoke at a Sensitization Campaign on Mental Health Issues tagged, “Speak Out: Say No to Drug Addiction, Depression and Suicide”, in Lagos, bemoaned government’s failure regarding provision of employment, economic hardship and poor infrastructure, which are factors that can lead to
suicide.
The convener of the event and Executive Director, Centre for Corrections and Human Development, Mrs. Obioma Agoziem, who described mental health issues as a rampaging virus, berated government and financial institutions for not providing the needed support for victims of drug
addiction.
According to Agoziem, while the government fails to provide suitable environment for the public, as Nigeria is now currently ranked Africa’s most depressed country (WHO’s National Depression Report, 2019), many financial institutions and corporate organisations do not see any interest or gains in supporting campaigns against drug abuse and other social vices.
The executive director also lampooned many parents over their disposition to work at the expense of care giving and constant attention paid to their children.
She said, “Substance abuse is ravaging our youths like wild fire and the government, banks and other corporate bodies have a role to play in the campaign against this
menace.
“Also our religious leaders and parents are not left out. They must provide the needed support for youths and children so that they can speak out, because from the encounters we have had, many people, including youths, we found out that victims hardly seek for help early enough.
“There is always that procrastination, that bottling up, that unwillingness to seek intervention and sometimes, even the fears of being stigmatized hold back so many victims.”
Meanwhile, a Director of MSCI Japan, Mr. Suzuki Yuichi, in his contribution, said, “The rapid growth in suicide option by Nigerians can be solved with more sensitisation on the people who are depressed over issues. Japan once faced the same situation but later curtailed it with lots of solutions, which we will introduce to the
country.”
Suzuki also promised to introduce certain technology that would help Nigerians to solve mental health challenges.
On her part, a psychiatrist from the Federal Neuropsychiatric Hospital, Yaba, Lagos, Dr. Nayah Egegbara, advised people to speak out on issues affecting them in order not to fall into depression.
She noted that depression, at a chronic stage, often led to unpalatable actions, among which may be
suicide.
Other experts at the event, who proffered solution to the rising suicide cases in the country, include; Dr. Oyinkansola Alabi, an emotional expert; Mr. Martin Akpaka, Mrs. Ngozi Okoro, the Lagos State coordinator of Child Protection Network and
others.
