ISLAMABAD: Minister of State for Narcotics Control Shehryar Afridi has stood by his remarks about use of cocaine and other drugs to manufacture medicines and claimed that this practice is widespread in all developed countries.

“Nothing is good or bad; it is the thinking that makes it so. People whose minds are full of negativity always present even good things as negative,” he said while talking to reporters after attending a function at the Punjab Council of Arts in Rawalpindi on Wednesday.

The minister was responding to criticism over a video clip of a public gathering in the Tirah valley in which he could be heard saying that the state burned tonnes of drugs seized every year when they could be used to make medicines. His statement is being criticised widely on social media.

According to a media report, Mr Afridi said it was the vision of Prime Minister Imran Khan that “there should be a positive use of everything even if it is a menace”. He had also announced that a factory was being built on the directives of the prime minister where drug seeds would be used to manufacture medicines.

Justifying the remarks, the minister told reporters that “India earned $22 billion by exporting medicines made by drug seeds”, adding that the prime minister’s vision was to take proactive initiatives and use every resource — even the ones that were an affliction — which had a positive utility.

He said that although poppy seeds had not been grown in Pakistan since 2001, these were still found in Afghanistan and tribal areas of the country. “I talked about it in Tirah because such substances [drugs] are still available there. These substances should be used in a positive manner,” he added.

“But [in areas] where all resources are available, they can be utilised [in a] positive way to make medicines. Maybe the [point] was lost in translation from Pashto. The world has taken benefits by using drugs in medicines manufacturing and earned a lot but we are still in same state,” he maintained.

Recently as well, Mr Afridi found himself in hot water when he claimed that they [the government] had video proof against Rana Sanaullah, a leader of the opposition Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz who was arrested by the Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF) for allegedly carrying drugs a couple of months ago. But later his statement was negated by the ANF.

The minister had also faced serious allegations that he spent “lavishly” on renovation of his official residence at state expense. However, he had denied such allegations.

Published in Dawn, February 6th, 2020