Morocco’s civic society raises the alarm about the prevalence of crack cocaine ‘Pouffa’ in order to avert a pandemic

In Morocco, the “pouffa” substance is widely used by young people and adolescents, prompting civil society to raise the alarm about the dangers of its illegal trafficking, distribution, and use.

The narcotic, known as “poor-people’s cocaine,” is crack cocaine smoked through recycled plastic bottles, and it has spread among users, posing risks and dangers to people all across the Kingdom.

Pouffa is created by combining harmful chemicals with leftover cocaine residue in improvised labs.

As authorities work to stop the drug’s rising popularity and accessibility, which has become out of control, news of arrests have recently made headlines.

According to Rachida El Mokrie Elidrissi, the leader of the National Coalition Against Narcotics, “the rapid prevalence of this dangerous drug is due to its capability to offer strong sensations of ecstasy and hallucination to vulnerable young people.”

Because of their ignorant propensity to seek out means of escapism and experiment with novel experiences and illusory pleasures, Elidrissi said that addicts are vulnerable to the fatal promises of such narcotics.

Due to their immaturity and inability to perceive situations from a well-informed, perceptive perspective, vulnerable adolescents are particularly susceptible to this type of drug use, the expert explained.

Head of the National Society for Combating Smoking and Drugs Hassan Al-Baghdadi stated that “the state must take action to prevent the spread of these toxins,” emphasizing that “the sentences issued against drug barons and traffickers do not correspond to the severity of the crime they commit.”

In exchange for minor sentences of little more than three months, a year, or a sentence for a temporary parole, he claimed, traffickers damage the cornerstone of civilization.

According to Al-Baghdadi, this drug “has expanded in a very terrible way, as it is produced and promoted by some immigrants from sub-Saharan Africa, and its price ranges between MAD 50 and MAD 60 per gram.”

The chairman of the Moroccan group for Human Rights in Marrakech, Omar Arbib, claimed that the “Pufa” drug spread at an astounding rate and noted that the group had frequently received “cases of assault committed by drug abusers.”

“Those who take this drug attack themselves and their assets and create a kind of chaos,” according to Arbib, “because taking this drug gives the user a strong charge of aggression, which leads to violent crimes.”

The human rights activist discussed the negative effects of this substance, saying: “Only three uses are necessary for a person to become frightening, and the damages on the psychological level are serious, let alone the difficulty treating its addiction.”

In particular, because organized networks of human trafficking are responsible for this predicament, Arbib advocated for a “wide-ranging campaign that addresses not only consumers but also promoters, from the small promoter to the drug barons.”

The head of the Moroccan Association for Human Rights in Marrakesh also called for “strengthening the security approach, its capabilities and monitoring mechanisms,” highlighting the necessity of passing a real economic policy to monitor money laundering while launching media campaigns to raise awareness.