Decriminalising drugs will remove one of the main incentives for kicking the habit, a lifelong user believes.

Reggie*, 38, a self-confessed recovering heroin addict, said the real prospect of tarnishing his clean criminal record had forced him to return to rehabilitation rather than continue abusing drugs.

“I don’t agree with removing the criminal aspect from drug use at all. In fact, I know that in my case it was one of the main reasons why I decided to return to rehab and try to quit for good,” he said.

His views contrast sharply with those of drug expert Mario Mifsud, former National Forensic Lab director, who is advising Parliament on the future of the island’s “outdated” drug laws.

The outspoken pharmacologist told The Sunday Times of Malta that the decriminalisation of drugs was inevitable.

“If we are to continue following the UN’s lead on the matter, we will eventually have to move towards decriminalisation,” he said, adding that Maltese lawmakers were already leaning towards decriminalising drug use.

I don’t agree with removing the criminal aspect from drug use at all

Behind the closed blinds of Caritas centre’s therapy room, Reggie said he was filled with a new sense of conviction to kick his addiction, thanks to the legal system in place.

“The outcome of my [court] case will depend heavily on my performance in rehabilitation.

“This makes it more important than ever to work at kicking the habit. I think this must be the case for most other heavy users out there,” he said, nervously clasping his palms throughout the interview, stopping only to occasionally scratch his forearm.

He is among the Żebbuġ centre’s oldest visitors and by no means a novice drug abuser.

“I’ve been taking drugs for the past 25 years. I started with my first joint when I was 13 and moved on to heavier drugs almost immediately,” he said, pinning down much of his addiction to his turbulent past.

“My parents are foreign and got divorced when I was born. I came to Malta to live with my grandmother when I was three days old. There are things that people deal with that I just haven’t been able to,” he said, not wishing to reveal more.

As a user, Reggie said he would routinely turn to his family for financial support to sustain his addiction.

He regularly injected heroin to pacify his unresolved issues.

“When you’re on drugs you feel great but you won’t feel like going to work in the morning and by the afternoon you feel like shooting up again,” he said.

The life he had grown accustomed to on the outside, however, is a far cry from that of a Caritas resident. Reggie is four months into his nine-month stay – his seventh stint at the regimental rehabilitation unit – and insists the structured life there is key to his recovery.

This ordered lifestyle is evident throughout the former military barracks, which are run with the same precision.

As Reggie recounts his experiences, the centre’s 20 residents sound off for breakfast in a dining hall run like a battle formation.

For the residents, meals are as much about discipline as they are about nutrition. Reggie said that his rehabilitation had started sometime before he entered the centre.

“The detox period is the hardest part. When you’re preparing to go through it, it’s scary because it’s agony and you have to face it alone,” he said, adding that he would wean himself off drugs before entering rehabilitation to ease the transition.

“When you’re going cold turkey, if you feel sick in the morning then you feel sick all day.

“You can’t sleep, it’s terrible. If you’re going to go through that effectively, then you need to really mean it,” he said.

* Name has been changed