André Strydom, who is a former drug addict from Cape Town, told OFM News that the area seems to be a central point in the country for drug-trafficking.

“Coming from Cape Town, we know the drug epidemic there. But I have never seen anything like I’ve seen in Heidedal. It is so condensed and it is multiplied with people using drugs. It is just a real struggle because it is a very dense area. I worked with a kid who’s 14 years old. He has been smoking Mandrax from the age of eight and has never gone to school in his life. There is definitely a big problem here,” says Strydom.

He added that Heidedal will soon have its own Victory Outreach Centre, which specialises in rehabilitating and recovering drug addicts and their affected families free of charge. He says 15 men will initially be placed on the programme for nine months, with the aim of expanding it later.

“There is a curriculum that gets followed for nine months, but everything is spiritual and it is free of charge. Look, 15 beds are not enough because there are hundreds of people in Heidedal who currently need help. This will be a starting platform and we hope to grow it from there.”

He says those individuals who are addicted, need to come clean and say that they have a problem.

“When you live the life some of us have lived, you don’t have answers. I joined the programme straight from the Polsmoor Prison. This is a spiritual thing - no doctor, psychologist or medicine will help you. It has to come from yourself, it is a decision that only you can make. I know this programme works, because I came through it. I should’ve been dead, so I am very grateful to be part of it,” says Strydom.

Aldon Cunningham, from Elsie’s River in Cape Town, says he was a drug addict for 20 years and through the programme he got his life back on track.

“I come from a long line of drug addicts. My father was also a drug addict and he had the privilege of entering this home. His testimony helped me to break my addiction and has changed my life.”

He says he hopes to now make a difference in the lives of drug addicts in Bloemfontein.

Strydom adds that they will host a Victory Outreach Drama at the Clive Solomon Stadium on September 30, free of charge. The play will be about a young man troubled by his drug addiction, who then later takes his own life and lets his family deal with the consequences of both his addiction and his death.

Victory Outreach started in 1967 in the United States of America (USA) and has facilities in 33 countries, including various cities in South Africa.

The MEC for Police, Roads and Transport on Monday expressed his concern about drug trafficking in the province. He added that 271 people were arrested in the last quarter for various crimes, including drug-trafficking.

OFM News