According to NCWS National President, Mrs Laraba Shoda, in a statement on Monday, September 13, 2021, the country is not morally ready to tackle the negative side effects of legalizing Cannabis in the country; irrespective of its economic and health benefits.
She said; “As Nigerian women, we say no to the legalization of cannabis Sativa. We already have lots of challenges in the country that are associated with drugs abuse. Legalizing weed will further worsen our situation, in spite of its tremendous benefits. I am sure we are not ready as a nation to handle the legalization of the weed at this time.”
Mrs Shoda stated that many Nigerian youths, including young women, are already involved in the abuse of drugs and she feared that the legalizing of weed will confound the abuse.
She further stated that “In my view, we should not legalize cannabis Sativa yet, when there is little to no research data on the various areas the plant is cultivated since most people grow them in secrecy in our environment. We should rather start with giving relevant stakeholders the mandate to coordinate research across schools of pharmacy in the country to develop validated analytical methods to do quantitative phytochemistry of the plant.”
.Mrs Shoda advised that individuals who might want to use the plant for medication and health purposes should use established legal channels for its procurement and use.
It should be noted that The House of Representatives had expressed readiness to legalize the use of cannabis in the country.
