Cannabis legalisation (It must benefit the right and correct people, not middlemen!):

Cannabis legalisation and the desirable socioeconomic beneficiation thereof

(The humble thoughts of a social protection specialist physician)

 A. The need for cannabis legalisation emanates from the following factors:

 1. Cannabis is actually a soft drug more or less in the same category as beer or alcohol in general (wine, whisky, brandy, spirits, etc) in terms of its intoxicating and other psychological, spiritual and social effects. Cannabis is so way out of the league of hard drugs such as cocaine, heroin and mandrax, it’s incomparable!  

  2. Alcohol actually has more direct and indirect deleterious physical, mental, psychological, social, spiritual, and environmental side-effects than cannabis, while tobacco is downright harmful as compared.

3. Despite being largely outlawed in many countries, cannabis is still the most widely produced and traded herbal drug worldwide. The market for cannabis is just as big as that of tobacco, beer or alcohol in general.

4. Cannabis is actually much cheaper and easier to grow, process and trade in as compared to really hard drugs such as cocaine, heroin, mandrax and ecstasy. Anyone can successfully and cheaply grow cannabis.

 5. Because of it being outlawed, rural folks, who are naturally the biggest growers of cannabis, are actually the least beneficiaries of the profits from the same. The real and actual beneficiaries are dodgy and ruthless middlemen who are now so rich that they literally control national police forces and judicial systems! 

6. Legalisation of the production and trade of cannabis will beneficiate rural folks and greatly improve their socioeconomic wellbeing, but only if it is done properly and correctly and always with that in mind or as a priority! No government must ever legalise cannabis for the benefit of middlemen other than its own disadvantaged people, especially the traditional growers of this herb in the rural areas! That will be a sin.

 B. How to legalise cannabis in a way which would benefit rural folks:

 7. First and foremost, the growing of cannabis (just the growing of cannabis alone), must be completely legalised without any strings attached. Anyone who can grow cannabis must just be allowed to grow it in much the same way as anyone who can grow maize is allowed to grow it, no licence required, and full stop.

 8. Secondly, it is only those who want to purchase, process and trade in cannabis who must be licensed. If this is done, all growers, regardless of their size, can get competitive prices for their produce without being fleeced by middlemen as is the case right now. Rural folks will be the biggest beneficiaries of this scenario.

 9. Government will reap a lot of good rewards from levying a small percentage taxation on every kilogram of cannabis which is sold or bought. Growers will have to pay a smaller percentage in tax than buyers. 

 10. The use to which buyers will put their bought cannabis, whether it will be for medicinal or recreational purposes, will of course have to be legalised and licensed by government just as what happens with alcohol. Please note that no one needs a licence to grow any of the ingredients which are used to produce alcohol! Why then must a licence be necessary for the growing of cannabis, just its growing only?  

 Dr Cleopas Sibanda: MBChB; MSc WHW; PGDip OSH; PGCert OSH; PGCert SP.

Occupational Health and Social Protection Specialist Physician

Contact Cell: +268 76833180. Email: [email protected]