On August 7, 2025, hundreds of Liberians walked in Monrovia to express their dissatisfaction with the government’s lack of a proactive approach in dealing with drug abuse cases that were rapidly going out of control throughout the country.
The march was organized by the youth, community members, parents, and the “Say No to Drugs” campaign.
The voices of protest reflected their grievances concerning the usage of Kush, cocaine, marijuana, and synthetic opioids, which, according to them, were the main causes of youth involvement in drugs.
People in attendance, while wearing black outfits that symbolized the lives lost to addiction and death, were also holding signs that said “We Tired with Kush” and “Say No to Drugs”.
The protestors were very loud in demanding that the health and security authorities should act immediately to stop addictions at home, telling the histories of dependency, brutality, and decay in their neighborhoods.
Along with severely punishing inadequate responses, they also called for more regulation, the application of rehabilitation programs, and the engagement of enacted policies.
Moreover, the Women’s groups of the CDC, MOVEE, and CMC political parties were not in any way different as they personally took the issue and released statements that condemned what they referred to as the ineffective government actions in combating drug trafficking.
The two women’s organizations attributed the reported pardoning of a notorious drug offender and the release of a jail, which were among the reasons by which confidence in the justice system was lowered, to the incident.
For quite a long time, Kush, a synthetic drug that is being increasingly used in West Africa, has been the cause of neurological disorders, mental diseases, and death by overdose.
The government, however, has responded to the drug problem by acknowledging it. At the same time, critics maintain that the reaction is not sufficient, and to make matters worse, there is no official statement about the demonstration.
