The demise of Nigerian talented Tik Tok dancer Obi Madubogwu who is popularly known as Odogwu Mara has left his family in a state of trauma and difficult moment.
According to GossipmillNaija, the young man who was well-known for his exuberant dance performances on TikTok passed away after consuming potentially poisonous Indian hemp.
Since then, the young man’s fans and followers have flooded his social media page with condolence messages, while some have just expressed astonishment at his untimely passing.
Sky News has reported that cannabis candies marketed and promoted on social media platforms like Instagram and Tik Tok are packaged to resemble packages of Haribo and Skittles.
On Telegram, one dealer is promoting a variety of cannabis candies in colorful packages with false branding.
At least six children have been sent to the hospital aftereating cannabis sweets, according to the police, who claim that the packaging makes them appealing to kids. One kid was only eight years old.
There are also concerns that drugs are used to lure children into trafficking drugs by county lines gangs, which are based in big cities but use youngsters to deliver and sell drugs to users in towns and rural areas. Police in the east of England said that a third of people arrested in relation to cannabis edibles are under the age of 18.
The sweets are routinely promoted and sold alongside class A drugs including heroin, cocaine, and LSD, as well as large quantities of marijuana.
Image: One Telegram channel posted images of large bags of marijuana above boxes of gummies, as well as sheets of the Class A drug LSD
Sky News found dealers are operating openly on the five most popular social media sites: Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, and Snapchat. They are also using the messaging services Whatsapp and Telegram, and the latter is the most popular platform for dealers to provide prices and initiate sales.
The story came to light after a dealer added a Sky News journalist on Instagram to anaccount selling cannabis sweets.
The sweets are known as gummies and have no connection to the legitimate brands named on some of the packagings.
Some dealers are adding illegal substances to the sweets themselves
Some products using CBD, a chemical found in cannabis, are on sale legitimately in shops across the country, but these sweets are illegal and contain high levels of THC – which is the chemical that gives a user a high.
Many appear to have been brought into the UK from California, where drug laws are different.
Ordering in bulk is encouraged, and dealers offer discounts on big orders of gummies and harder drugs.
Image: This seller is advertising class A drugs like heroin and offering bulk discounts on other hard drugs, while also offering ‘gummies’ elsewhere in the channel. The chat appears under searches for ‘uk gummies’. Pic: Telegram
Searching on Telegram for the word “gummies” brings up many groups where the sweets can be bought for just £5. One group has 62,000 subscribers and two others have almost 30,000 and 16,000 subscribers each.
Typing in the word “edibles” on the Facebook marketplace in the UK resulted brought up items containing drugs. Around a third of the first 40 results were advertised as containing cannabis.
Those looking for “gummies uk” on TikTok were shown results mostly showing legal sweets but the app offers suggestions that point users to sweets offered by dealers.
These suggestions include searching “how to get ediblegummies uk” and “telegrampluguk” (plug being a term for a dealer or someone who can connect you to a dealer) and “gummies with htc uk” (htc being a spelling variation of THC).
Image: TikTok’s suggested searches pointed users to other drug content. Pic: TikTok
A network of dealers appears to be operating on some of the social sites. For example on Instagram, looking at the accounts following or being followed by a seller leads you to discover more sellers.
Cannabis sweets are a problem for police forces across the UK. Almost all police forces in England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland have had an issue with the sweets in their area, and 80% issued a statement or confirmed this to Sky News.
Image: One dealer’s Instagram page
The Eastern Region Special Operations Unit (ERSOU) has a unit that manages the threat of serious and organized crime across eastern England and covers Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Hertfordshire, Norfolk, Suffolk, Kent, and Essex.
Intelligence from ERSOU shared with Sky News suggests boys and girls under 18 are consuming cannabis edibles, primarily those of secondary school age.
A third of those arrested in relation to cannabis edibles in the eastern region are under the age of 18.
Image: The likeness of some big name brands are used by dealers to market their edibles
Detective Chief Inspector Rob Burns, from ERSOU, says that cannabis edibles are illegal and have side effects, such as loss of consciousness.
He said: “The way they are branded to look like sweets suggests they are being marketed at children, but worryingly also means that they could easily fall into the wrong hands.
“We also know that gangs involved in county lines will use an array of tactics to target vulnerable young people, and reporting suggests social media is used to advertise the sale of cannabis edibles, potentially to appeal to younger people who are using multiple social media platforms.”
He added that anyone with information on the sale of these items or who thinks a child is being exploited to sell them should contact the police.
The social media companies mentioned in this article all told Sky News they have strict policies prohibiting the buying or selling of any drugs, including sweets containing THC. They say they actively monitor this issue on their platforms using a mix of both technology and humans to review content.
Meta, which owns Instagram, Facebook, and Whatsapp,said it removed 98% of this content proactively in the last quarter and that it was working with the police and youth organizations to improve their moderation.
Image: Accounts selling gummies were also found on Twitter
Most of the accounts and search terms flagged during the Sky News investigation have now been banned.
The companies behind the sweets and snacks whose branding is copied by drug makers have previously spoken out against the look-a-like packaging, and some took legal action.
Sky News has blurred the names of accounts to avoid giving publicity to the sellers.
Jackline Mensah rose to fame on Tik Tok during the COVID pandemic. She has become a permanent figure on the app, entertaining her audience whilst earning a sustainable income.
She responded with a video saying, “It’s almost 3 am in the morning, and I haven’t slept. The main reason is that there’s fake news circulating that I said I wouldn’t date who uses public transport. Fine. Let’s even say I said that, what can you do about it? Nothing, because it’s my opinion.”
She pointed out that the reason for the malicious lies was to post engagement on blogs and Twitter handles.
“If you will quote me, quote me right. Why would you go around making fake headlines so people would come on your page and engage, throw shades and insult me? So picking on somebody who is relevant to society. Somebody who is trying to make it to the top, you just want to use a day to bring that person down. God is watching you all.
“Let me tell you something, you are not God. You didn’t make me. God knew the plans he had for me. That is why I’m where I’m today.”
Jackline Mensah also challenged those who want to belittle her profession to join if they think it’s easy to attain her professionalism.
“If it’s just Tik Tok star keke, do it and let’s see. You wish I was your sister. You even wish you were from my family. So do it, and let’s see. We are trying to put Ghana on the map. I don’t even know you all. You are so full of pain and hatred,” she concluded.
TikTok, the fast-growing mobile video app, pledged Thursday to contribute $250 million to coronavirus relief efforts around the world.
The Chinese-based firm, which US officials and lawmakers have assailed for potential security risks, said the funds would be for “front line medical workers, educators, and local communities deeply affected by the global crisis.”
TikTok’s move follows similar announcements from technology firms including Google, Facebook and Netflix as well as from leaders of Microsoft, Amazon and Twitter.
“We are committed to playing our part in that global outpouring of mutual support and giving,” TikTok president Alex Zhu said in a statement.
“We want to magnify all we are seeing across our community and translate it into concrete relief for those most affected by this crisis.”
TikTok said $150 million of the funds would be allocated for medical staffing, supplies, and hardship relief for health care workers through the US Centers for Disease Control, World Health Organization, and agencies working to distribute supplies in hard-hit countries including India, Indonesia, Italy and South Korea.
Another $40 million will be donated to “organizations that serve groups representative of TikTok’s diverse user communities, including musicians, artists, nurses, educators, and families that have come together on our platform,” Zhu said.
TikTok said it would match $10 million in donations to its “community relief fund,” with some of that going to artists, songwriters, and music professionals hurt by cancelled performances and gig work.
Another $50 million will be applied to a “creative learning fund” to support distance learning efforts worldwide.
TikTok, popular with teens for its short music videos, has become one of the most widely used social platforms in recent months and has seen interest surge during the pandemic.
The application, owned by Chinese tech company ByteDance, saw 65 million worldwide downloads in March, according to analytics site SensorTower.
But officials from the FBI, the Justice Department and Homeland Security have warned that the video-sharing app could become another tool exploited by Chinese intelligence services.
TikTok has denied any ties with the Chinese government.
Nu.de model Shugatiti has joined the craze which is currently in vogue on the Ghanaian social media space, especially among the popular female and male celebrities.
In a video she shared on her Instagram page not long ago, Shugatiti was seen flashing her pumped m3lonz, her t!ttiez and some bit of flesh down even tho she was seen sitting down.
She was also seen seductively drinking a glass of juice she had in her hand while singing along to the song in the background.
