Listen to This Article Enhance your reading experience by listening to this article.

Violent confrontations over the ban on muguka raged on yesterday in Mombasa County as transporters of the stimulant clashed bitterly with county enforcement teams.

At the cess collection point in Miritini, trucks ferrying muguka were repulsed, leading to violent clashes between the two groups for the second day running.

After forcing entry into the port city of Mombasa and successfully accessing the Kongowea Market on Wednesday, the transporters woke up to a rude shock yesterday after they ran into a heavily mobilized Mombasa County team ready to confront them.

Reinforced by organized youth groups, the enforcement team mounted roadblocks, patiently lying in wait.

Shortly after 11:00 am, a convoy of bodaboda escorts followed by loaded trucks appeared in the horizon, reportedly escorted by hired goons from Mariakani and Mazeras for security.

 As they neared the cess collection point, the enforcement teams, bolstered by youth, charged at the convoy, hurling stones, glass bottles, and other objects, forcing the trucks to turn back. In the chaos, a youth accused of informing the transporters was seriously wounded.

Lit bonfires

Angered by the clash, the transporters lit bonfires and blocked the Nairobi-Mombasa Highway, causing a massive traffic snarl-up.

They eventually retreated to Mariakani, 20 kilometers away, where they offloaded the cargo, leaving traders stranded as they figured means to access the City and markets beyond.

 This situation is really getting out of hand. Today they have finished us. We have made immense losses; it’s time now for the leaders to solve this problem amicably. We are really suffering,” lamented one trader, decrying the decomposing product and the resulting financial losses.

In an interview Mombasa county Director of Inspectorate Charles Changawa said his team was keen to ensure “the muguka transporters pay cess as required by the Mombasa County laws.”

“We are here to ensure that there is order and decorum. We will allow another forced entry like yesterday,” Changawa said in Miritini.

As the standoff continued, voices advocating for a muguka ban grew louder. Former Deputy Speaker Farah Maalim, the latest to weigh in, framed the issue as a medical rather than political concern.

“Do we need a parliamentary debate to determine whether cocaine is legal or ilegal?  It’s a drug, it’s a global thing. This is something that is recognised world over. Why do we have to have a conversation around it when it’s a drug. The legality or illegality of any drug is based on the chemical formula of that drug. The chemical formula of muguka and miraa is that they are toxic drugs, shisha and marijuana the same thing…” he said. 

Separately, Muslim clerics from Garissa upped pressure on Northern Kenya governors to ban Muguka and miraa to prevent their entry and consumption in their counties.

Religious leaders

Reacting to the recent bans in Mombasa and Kilifi, religious leaders emphasized the detrimental effects of these stimulants on their communities. Speaking at the Garissa SUPKEM offices, Chairman Abdullahi Salat highlighted the negative impact of Muguka on society, including high divorce rates, school dropouts, poor student performance, and rising crime rates.

 “Our region is one of the most affected by the abuse of this plant (Muguka). Its effects are visible; some users even develop mental health issues. Many have squandered resources on it,” Salat stated. He called on governors from pastoralist counties to impose bans, stressing the importance of safeguarding society and future generations.

Sheikh Hussein Mahat pointed to NACADA’s classification of miraa and Muguka as drugs, urging a complete ban. He criticized parliament’s move to list miraa as a cash crop and called on the government to match its fight against illicit brews with efforts to curb miraa and Muguka abuse, which have equally devastated the region.

At the same time, scientists from the Khat Research Program wrote to Mombasa Governor Abdulswamad Nassir commending him for his efforts to protect the city’s children from the harmful effects of muguka.

 The letter, authored by Dr. Abdulkadir Haji, a founding member of the Khat Research Program and professor emeritus of Biological Psychology at Linnaeus University, Sweden, and Dr. Mustafa al’Absi, the founding director of the program and professor at the University of Minnesota Medical School, details the negative effects of miraa and its ban in many European countries and North America.

Researching miraa

Dr Haji, a behavioral neuroscientist from Mombasa’s Old Town, and Dr al’Absi, a clinical psychologist from Yemen, bring over thirty years of experience in researching the impact of drugs on the brain and behavior. They referenced the World Health Organization’s (WHO) classification of miraa as a drug of abuse in 1980, noting its potential to cause dependence. The United Nations Narcotics Laboratory’s analysis in the 1970s identified cathinone in miraa, a compound similar to the stimulant amphetamine, which increases blood pressure, causes insomnia and anorexia, and heightens excitation, alertness, and arousal.

Given these findings, many European countries and North America have banned miraa, with Sweden and Norway enacting prohibitive legislation in 1989. The letter expressed concern over the increasing use of miraa and muguka among children and adolescents in Mombasa, highlighting the risks to their mental health and education. Chronic use during adolescence can disrupt brain development, leading to cognitive dysfunction, depression, antisocial behavior, and delinquency.

The Khat Research Program (KRP), an international initiative involving researchers from Africa, the Middle East, Europe, and the USA, is dedicated to studying the impact of miraa use. Partly funded by the US National Institute of Health, KRP aims to further research and training on miraa’s effects in countries like Ethiopia, Somalia, Yemen, Kenya, and Uganda. Studies from KRP have shown miraa use has negative social, economic, and health impacts in some African countries. Other researchers have presented evidence of oral cancer, heart arrhythmia, and liver toxicity caused by chronic miraa use.

The letter particularly emphasizes the adverse behavioral and psychological impact of miraa use in children. Substance use and mental health are intertwined, and evidence indicates drug intake during adolescence has long-term negative impacts, including a predisposition to drug abuse later in life. The scientists urge Governor Nassir to continue his efforts to control drug use among Mombasa’s youth, grounding his resolve in science and sound public health practice.