Th
e recent upsurge in the production of Cann
abis, popularly known as
‘wee’ classified as a narcotic substance in Ghana has stoked a legal
debate on where national discourse on the matter should begin.
As per the laws of the country, wee is not illegal - but wait a minute; there are conditions to its possession and use.
So if for any reason you want to use, cultivate, import and export the
substance, first get approval from the Minister of Health, and you are
good to go.
Private legal practitioner Samson Lardy Anyenini argues that:
“Like, abortion, wee is NOT illegal in Ghana. The manufacture,
cultivation, exportation, importation, possession, injection, smoking,
sniffing etc "WITHOUT lawful authority" or "WITHOUT licence" or "WITHOUT
lawful excuse" is what is prohibited in Ghana. Emphasis added. The law
says licence is to be obtained from the Secretary for Health - now
Minister of Health. So, all that must be done in Ghana is the mechanics
of obtaining the LAWFUL authority or licence or excuse.”
He made reference to the NARCOTIC DRUGS (CONTROL, ENFORCEMENT AND SANCTIONS) LAW, 1990 (PNDCL 236).
Section (1) and (2) of the law states:
(1) Any person who imports or exports any narcotic drug without a
licence issued by the Secretary for Health for that purpose commits an
offence and shall on conviction be liable to imprisonment for a term of
not less than ten years.
(2) The Secretary for Health may grant a licence for the importation of
narcotic drugs if on an application made to him by such persons as may
be prescribed he is satisfied that the licence can be properly granted.
Section 5 which talks about the use of Narcotic Drugs also states:
(1) No person shall without lawful authority or excuse smoke, sniff,
consume, inject in his body or otherwise administer narcotic drug on his
body.
Again Sections 1(4) of the law states that “where a person imports any
narcotic drug he shall within 14 days of such import deliver to the
Pharmacy Board the particulars of the drug imported”.
Samson, however, argues that if it were a banned product, provisions
wouldn’t have been made in the law for possession, importation of the
substances.
What appears to be the missing link to obtaining a lawful use or
possession of the so-called narcotic substances, are the modalities
which are currently not in place.
What is missing, however, is a legislative instrument which would spell
out the modalities for its use, cultivation and importation or
exportation?
Information gathered by weekend Finder indicate that most of the youth
in the country are abandoning growing food crops and are busily
cultivation Indian hemp.
A source in the Volta region told Weekend Finder that are now leaving
town and moving farther into forest lands where they cultivate large
acres of the herb.
The source said say after three to four months in the bush they return
richer due to the high prices and demand for the commodity.
The source further stated that although some of the wee farms are
cultivated in forest serves in the region, they are not detected because
of the protection they get from some security officials.
The source stated further that due the recent delays in coming of the
rains, more of the youth are moving into wee cultivation which has a
short maturity period and weather resistant.
