The Lagos State Police Commissioner, Fatai Owoseni on Wednesday advised Nigerians to speak out against depression to curtail the rising incidences of suicide in the country.
The commissioner spoke at the Ordinary Meeting and Scientific Conference organised by the Association of Resident Doctors, Federal Neuropsychiatric Hospital, Yaba in Lagos.
According to Owoseni, “Police is the first respondent in everything you can think of and it is the way people interact with us that sometimes make us suggest they need mental checkup.
“There are so many things that can lead to suicide.
“From our own point of view and looking at the trends of suicide lately, there is what we call depression which has not been accepted in Africa.
“People need to speak out and it is when families are bold enough to share their problems that we know how to handle them and prevent suicide cases.
“Although, some people will say depression is an African thing; it is important we do self-appraisal once in a while to know when the workload is high.
“We should also study people around us, break the silence and talk to people as the same depression leads to domestic violence.
“In foreign countries, the victims share their experiences and they were healed,” he said.
He said that because of stigmatisation, some families had refused to speak out on what went wrong with them, which he said, was a major challenge and therefore, urged the academics to educate the public on the causes of suicide and other depression-related conditions.