Before the incumbent Administration took office, successive governments had failed to establish a remand centre for drug users, National Drug Agency (NDA) Chairperson Lubna Zahir has said.
Speaking on PSM News' ‘Raajje Miadhu’ programme, Lubna said NDA drug users are held in remand for the safety of society.
Though it is mandated by law, successive governments had failed to establish a system to hold drug users in remand, she said.
According to Lubna, NDA’s primary aim is to put drug users under long-term rehabilitation treatment after their remand period.
"The goal is not to hold them for just 30 days and let them checkout of there. We want to get them into the long-term rehabilitation treatment system, give them proper treatment and facilitate their reintegration back into our society," she explained.
Out of the total 269 people that have been taken into remand custody so far, around 70 percent have been placed in residential care, she added.
Lubna said NDA immediately starts detoxification treatments for those taken into remand custody along with getting them psychological help they need.
Drug addicts are usually taken into remand custody if they pose a danger to society or their families.
NDA has initiated the expansion of the detoxification centre at Hinmafushi Rehabilitation Centre. The facility will be able to treat up to 50 individuals simultaneously and is nearing completion.
A four-storey building is also being developed in Hulhumale’ to run a remand centre where about 100 individuals can be treated at the same time. Maldives’ drug testing capabilities have also significantly improved, with the number of detectable substances increasing from seven to 22.