According to some experts of the South African Police Service and drug rehabiliation centers whoonga is essentially just a rebranding of older heroin based drugs like sugars:[3]
Oh brother Wunga is nothing than Heroin being sold as something else to unsuspecting peoples. It's similar to the drug cheese that was marketed to unsuspecting teens, as something cool and not exactly heroin.
“The media has made a fuss about the new drug on the streets, panicking people and worrying the government. But it’s not new,” the SAPS’s Colonel Jay Naicker said.
“The drug dealers add all sorts of stuff to the heroin, the primary ingredient, just to increase the mass of the drug when it’s sold and make the heroin go further. A lot of the stuff has no effect and users have no idea what’s going in,” said a member of the police’s Organised Crime Unit.[3]
The drug is described as highly addictive. Project Whoonga, a charity devoted to combating the drug, reports that users feel heavy cravings even on the first day of use. It is also dangerous, because it reduces both heart and lung function. In overdose, heart and lung function reduction becomes fatal. Withdrawal symptoms reportedly involve both craving and pain, which are temporarily relieved by fresh doses of the drug.[1][7]
