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Battered, ruined by drugs …Story of 30-year-old mason
● Samuel Yao Kumah desires to get out of drug addiction
Many are of the view that once a person has passed the teenage years, there is no possibility of being influenced by their peers.
However, what happened to Samuel Yao Kumah might make many change their understanding of peer pressure.
In an interview with The Spectator last Thursday at Ashaiman in the Greater Accra Region, the 30-year-old Kumah disclosed that five years ago, he was a successful person frequenting some parts of a neighbouring country until he was introduced to drugs by some of his friends of the same age.
The mason recalled with tears that he once worked with a company which specialised in building warehouses and paid him handsomely.
He said the dramatic spiral began when some of his friends started begging him for money to buy drugs, which he did out of kindness.
Yao Kumah said that with time, as he hanged around with them, they convinced him to also have a sniff or two, and just so that he would not offend them, he agreed.
He said unfortunately, with time, he observed that he was to develop a strong ‘love’ for the drug and patronised it, especially when he was alone.
Sadly and unimaginably, with time, Yao Kumah became addicted and started investing so much in drugs.
He explained that this was because anytime he failed to take it, he experienced a serious discomfort popularly known as “turkey,” and so he had to try as much as possible to have access to it before he could feel normal.
“It affected my output at work, and I also lost interest in everything except drugs,” he said.
According to Yao Kumah, gradually he started losing so much, including his job, wife, savings and even some properties.
He said he was forever grateful to one of his brothers, who advised him to buy land and build a house when he had the means.
“But for him, I would have been homeless by now,” he recalled.
He said some families and friends had tried to caution him, but their pieces of advice came at a time when he was too neck-deep in it to turn back.
Yao Kumah said he regretted not staying away from such friends of bad influence and felt bad each time he remembered how he allowed himself to be destroyed so easily.
He currently tries to patch roads with potholes to earn some income or beg from road users to survive and take care of his three children, who live with his mother in the Volta Region.
Yao Kumah said his strongest desire was to stop doing drugs, get a decent job to take care of his children and restore his dignity.
He called on public-spirited people to help him to go to a rehabilitation centre to get professional help to get off drugs.
The mason said he had tried on his own to quit drugs, but the situation had gone beyond the use of willpower to get out of it.
He advised the youth to avoid bad company because it was true that evil company corrupted good manners, so that they would not end up like him.
“On this note, let me take the opportunity to advise families and friends not to abandon their loved ones when they become drug addicts but rather support them in any way they can to bring them out of the mess they have found themselves in.
“Indeed, I feel bad whenever I look back at how I had fallen, but I felt worse when people passed by and insulted or humiliated me,” Yao Kumah said.
He said he was ready to avail himself to talk to people to stay away from bad company and drugs, using his life as an example.
From Dzifa Tetteh Tay, Ashaiman
Madam Sandra Seyram Kpedor, the District Chief Executive (DCE) of Anloga in the Volta Region, has emphasised the importance of parental involvement in children’s education, stating that education is free, but parents need to do more to support their children.
She said parents, teachers, and students must be involved in addressing the challenges facing the district’s education sector, particularly the poor Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) results.
Madam Kpedor outlined some key roles parents should play to promote their children’s education, including providing a conducive learning environment, monitoring their children’s progress, and supporting teachers.
The DCE highlighted some challenges the district faced such as inadequate infrastructure and a shortage of teachers, which have also contributed to the poor BECE results and called on well-to-do parent to help solve the situation through and other supports.
To address the issues, she also announced that plans have been taken to utilise the district’s common fund to implement educational projects, such as constructing school blocks and teachers’ bungalows at Sodzi community, and 2-unit classroom blocks each at Akplorwutorkor and Tegbi-Afedome respectively, among others.
Madam Kpedor also noted that her office had earlier notified the Ministry of Education to deploy more teachers to the area to improve teaching and learning, and encouraged students to work hard and strive for excellence, and work beyond their limit to succeed.
“To my wonderful and beautiful girls, you have to know it clear that women and girls have equal opportunities to compete with men for greater achievements,” she indicated.
The DCE cited her own achievement as a testament to the fact that women can excel in leadership positions, alongside Vice President Nana Jane Opoku-Agyemang, and stressed that girls were no longer limited to domestic roles but can pursue their dreams and become leaders.
Additionally, she mentioned that a meeting was held earlier with assembly members, and other stakeholders to address the district’s educational challenges and improve academic performance.
She promised that the district’s education oversight committee and stakeholders would work together to address the challenges and improve the district’s BECE results and called for parental involvement and support to boost the district’s education sector for children to chase their dreams to become future leaders for the success of the district and the nation.
She urged parents not to leave everything to the government but rather help in the provision of some necessary materials such as textbooks, exercise books, pens, pencils, food, and guidance to children for the successes of young learners. –GNA
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The spokesperson for Dr. Bawumia, Dennis Miracles Aboagye, has criticised the implementation of the NDC government’s No Fee Stress policy, arguing that the programme has failed to deliver on its core promise.
According to him on Starr fm, the policy, which was introduced to ensure stress free payment of fees for level 100 tertiary students, has rather turned into what he described as post stress support.
He explained that students are required to pay their fees first before applying for reimbursement, a situation he believes defeats the purpose of the policy.
He questioned claims by government officials that the policy has been successful and that citizens are happy.
In his view, such claims do not reflect the lived realities of many Ghanaians. He stressed that while some people may appear satisfied, many others continue to struggle.
Dennis Miracles Aboagye pointed to the situation of trained teachers and nurses who have been picketing for nearly six months, demanding employment.
He noted that government responses suggesting it cannot accommodate all of them contradict claims of economic stability.
He further argued that economic indicators such as a stable currency mean little to people who are unable to secure jobs or access promised support.
He observed that telling an unemployed teacher or a struggling student that the cedi has strengthened does not address their immediate challenges.
On the issue of tertiary education, he maintained that no level 100 student benefited from stress free fees in 2025, despite the policy being announced.
He added that in 2026, students have already reported to school without receiving the promised support.
He insisted that asking students to pay fees first and seek reimbursement later amounts to support after hardship, not stress free education.
According to him, this approach goes against what was promised during the policy announcement.
Dennis Miracles Aboagye questioned why a government that presents the economy as strong is unable to fulfil what he described as simple and clear promises.
He added that there is a fundamental problem with the way the economy is being managed and indicated that he is prepared to explain his position further.
By: Jacob Aggrey
