Educationist says sachet liquor ban alone not enough

A local educationist has argued the ban on packaging of alcohol in sachets in plastic is not enough to stop alcohol abuse among students.

Following a public outcry on easy accessibility of liquor packaged in sachets and selling at cheap prices, government on Monday announced a Cabinet decision banning the production.

A renowned educationist, Dr. Steve Sharra, said on its own, the ban means nothing so long as there is no enforcement because it is the same with the general alcohol business.

Sharra said there are laws against drinking and driving but because they are not enforced, drivers of public transport are seen carrying passengers who openly drink and are cheered on.

Said Sharra: “If enforcement is not going to improve, this ban will have no consequences at all. For the ban to work there is need to have strict enforcement for manufacturing, distributing, buying and consuming of the sachets.

“The manufacturers are powerful, wealthy groups who have previously been able to defeat restrictions.”

He also said the absence of national identity cards makes it difficult to stop teenagers from accessing alcohol as it is difficult to prove their age.

Sharra said there has to be a holistic approach to the ban by looking at other aspects that are needed to make it effective.

“Our lax attitudes toward alcohol consumption need to change as well…The ease with which people access and consume alcohol is quite shocking.

“People drink alcohol openly, even when driving and they get away with it. The evidence shows when we have very high rates of road accidents caused by drunk driving, and the reason is because there are virtually no laws restricting this.

“Or, at least, the laws are not enforced to the extent they need to. This has a spill-over effect into alcohol abuse by young people, and that’s why the sachets business was able to thrive and quite rapidly, too.”

The educationist said a professor of neurology at the University of Pennsylvania in the United States, Frances Jensen, has recently published a book titled The Teenage Brain: A Neuroscientist’s Survival Guide to Raising Adolescents and Young Adults, in which she points what addiction does to teenagers.

He said the book says teenagers are susceptible to addiction because the part of the brain responsible for decision-making and impulse control is not yet fully developed until the late twenties.

Said Sharra: “In other countries it is illegal to be seen carrying an open alcoholic drink in public, or when driving. In Malawi, this is very common. We are failing to protect teenagers by allowing this to continue.

“The brain damage from substance abuse in teenagers is permanent and has adverse effects on their intellectual ability. It reduces their IQ and lowers academic performance. And this is permanent, according to new research.

“It has consequences on communities and on national development. We have to stop it and give young people better life chances.”