Law change sought to raise penalties for marijuana

National

By JACKLYN SIRIAS
THE marijuana issue in the country can be controlled if the drug legislation is amended, says Police Commissioner Gari Baki.
He was responding to concerns that the marijuana problem had gone from bad to worse because of the high rate of smuggling and trafficking from the Highlands and Central to other provinces.
“The work that’s been undertaken now is to look at the Drug Act 1952. We have a legislation that is completely out of time,” Baki said.
The legislation deals with only four offences – cultivating, harvesting, being in possession of, and making of marijuana.
Chief Inspector Joel Kapinias, of the National Drug and Vice Squad, said the maximum penalty for drug offences was two years.
“It does not cover other offences that relates to drugs,” he said.
“And mind you, you can cultivate plantations of drugs and harvest tonnes of them, but you will only be given about two years’ imprisonment. That is the maximum penalty.
“So when people are convicted, they get imprisoned for two years only or less. Then they come back and continue to do the same thing because they know they are going to have a not so tough punishment.”
Baki said the amendment to the law to control drug trafficking would require collaboration between government agencies and stakeholders.
“People have realised that marijuana is a source of income because they have seen the commercial value of this harmful drug and are now cultivating them in large quantities to earn money,” he said.
Baki said because of that, the issue of drug could not be addressed right away.
“What we need to do now is to look at amending the Act to control it,” he said.
“You will see there has been a lot of community awareness programme by our policemen around the provinces and that is what we are doing to try to eradicate it and stop it.
“I think the only thing we can do is control it through the amendment of the Act.”