By Amadou Manjang
The Minister of Basic and Secondary Education, Claudiana Ayo Cole has condemned the naming of kush drug after a Gambian athlete, Gina Bass.
‘Gina Bass should be associated with success. She should be associated with positive things, and not associating her name with drugs,’ Minister Cole said.
She made these remarks in her recent speech on the honoring ceremony of the ten outstanding teachers of 2023 Gambia Basic Education Certificate Examination.
Gina Bass is a Gambian athlete that represents the country in many sprinting events.
She has taken the Gambian flag to higher heights in many athletic events including the 200 metres at the 2016 African Championships where she won a bronze medal.
Meanwhile, the drug named after Gina Bass, kush, is a form of synthetic cannabinoid.
It is reported that kush is routinely mixed with an array of other additives substances making it more dangerous.
Kush drug first appeared in the Gambia in 2017 but its prevalence started in 2023.
According to the Drug Law Enforcement Agency of the Gambia (DLEAG), they have registered 73 kush drug cases in 2023.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Health said they have recorded twenty-five hospitalised cases and two related deaths so far in 2024.
It is not actually clear why the kush drug is named after Gina Bass. However, Minister Cole is furious about it.
‘The name [kush] that they have associated with her [Gina Bass] is even more disgusting because that young lady is a person who is out for success not failure,’ she said.
She called on people to stop associating Gina Bass’ name with kush drug.
She suggested that Gina Bass put out a disclaimer against the naming.
‘She needs to make a disclaimer. I want to believe she has to make a disclaimer,’ she said.
Further on, she called on young people especially students to distance themselves from kush drug as it can negatively affect their lives.
