Dr Simbyakula

By CHUSA SICHONE –

THE Drug Enforcement Commission (DEC) intends to continue its collaboration with the Ministry of Sport in a bid to discourage sportsmen and women from abusing illicit drugs.

Highlighting the 2013 achievements at the 15th DEC senior officers’ conference in Lusaka yesterday, DEC commissioner Alita Mbahwe said the Commission last year partnered with the Ministry of Sport to sensitise football players against the use of illicit drugs during the COSAFA Senior Challenge Cup.

“The Commission is considering continued partnership with the Ministry of Sport in the provision of anti-doping and sensitisation programmes to sports men and women. We need to let our sports men and women know that they can achieve greater results without resorting to drugs,” she said.

Home Affairs Minister Ngosa Simbyakula was the guest of honour at the conference that will run from February 4 to 7 under the theme ‘Achieving our work Goals through teamwork, innovation and Zero Tolerance to Corruption” where DEC also launched its 2013 to 2016 Strategic Plan.

Some sports men and women locally and internationally have secretly been using illicit drugs such as Marijuana so as to enhance their performance.

Sport Minister Chishimba Kambwili last year said his ministry had started the process of setting up an anti-doping unit which once fully fledged will see random checks conducted on sportsmen and women against vices such as dagga smoking.

Kambwili said this during the World Conference on Doping in Sport 2013 in Johannesburg, South Africa, the anti-doping unit would be established in Lusaka with technical co-operation from Cuba.

He said dagga smoking was one of the main vices in sport in Zambia, especially that most athletes believed that the substance would enhance their performance adding that the sport needed genuine winners and not fake ones.