Cape Town - Drug dealers should receive serious punishment and taverns should be removed from communities, said President Jacob Zuma.
He was speaking in Mitchells Plain at Sultan Bahu Rehabilitation Centre in the Western Cape.
Zuma said it was a concern to note that in some communities, children were drinking alcohol while going to school, adding that drug abuse was a national problem that needed everyone to respond.
Statistics show that children as young as nine are beginning to experiment with drugs, the President said.
In the Western Cape and some parts of the Northern Cape, Zuma said there was a high number of pregnant women who abused alcohol on farms.
"We must work together to curb the spread of drug abuse in our communities. We must take a resolution as a nation and find a solution," he said.
The rehab centre was founded by Shafiek David and is funded by the provincial Department of Social Development. Sultan Bahu has thus far assisted over 3 000 clients.
David, who has been commended by Zuma for the project, started it in his lounge after noting a need in the community.
Popular jazz musician Tsepo Tshola, a former drug addict, testified about the devastating effects of drug abuse.
"I got hooked. It took 17 years to get out of it (drugs) ... let's help each other in fighting this disease," he said.
He said that drug addiction could happen to anyone but "if we work together, we can win."
Minister of Social Development Bathabile Dlamini said that a national summit to find a solution to drug abuse was on the cards some time in the year.
