Elderly worried as youth resort to smoking grey hair

The elderly in Katakwi are in a state of a bother after the Police reported that a number of youth have resorted to smoking grey hair.

"I warn the old people to be vigilant and be wary of young men befriending them because they might soon resort to cutting off your heads so that they get grey hair," Oduko, the district community liaison officer, warned.

Oduko said the youth mix grey hair or soot with opium and they smoke as narcotic drugs.

Oduko, who doubles as the officer in-charge Katakwi Central Police Station, said the grey hair and soot are among the new things the Police have realized as narcotics smoked by locals besides paspalam, striga and opium.

Asked where the youth are getting the grey hair from, Oduko said they get from saloons, while others are befriending old women so as get the hair from them.

Oduko says this information was disclosed to him during the community policing meetings in various areas in the district.

As he explained, the youth are reasoning that they are smoking grey hair in order to grow old soon so that Government enrolls them to get the senior citizen grant meant for elders above 65 where each is paid sh25,000 each month.

"The youth claim that now that there are no jobs, its better they grow old so that they begin benefiting from the government money meant for elders," Oduko said.

He expressed worry that soon every village will have an area designated for mental people because there is a lot of opium in the communities which is not declared to police.

Meanwhile, the Police have burnt opium worth 120kgs recovered two months ago from three people riding motorcycles destined for Teso from Karamoja sub-region.

According to Oduko two of the people took off abandoning their opium and the motorcycle, while one person on a separate motorcycle was arrested. He was later released on court bail.