Hard drugs are already present in the Lau Group and denying the reality will only deepen the crisis, warns Lau Provincial Council chairman Ratu Meli Saubulinayau.
He said the province must now shift from denial to action by reducing the flow of drugs and tightening control over how they were entering Lau.
He said many of those bringing drugs into the province were not from Lau, highlighting the need for tighter monitoring and stronger community awareness.
“For the time being, we have been leaving these cases to the police to handle,” Ratu Meli said.
However, he said the situation now required a wider response, particularly with the Paramount Chief also speaking out on the issue.
“The vanua must come into the picture. Communities need to understand the drug problem and learn how to eradicate it from the islands.”
Ratu Meli warned that drugs were already harming families and young people, and said enforcement alone would not be enough.
“We need to be serious about what we are trying to do,” he said.
“We shouldn’t just talk about it and do nothing.”
He added that the province had been aware of the issue for years, but meaningful action had been slow.
