Women kick against planned legalisation of weed in Nigeria

National Council of Women Societies (NCWS) has kicked against the planned legalisation of cannabis sativa in Nigeria.

Mrs Laraba Shoda, National President of NCWS said this in a statement in Abuja on Monday , cautioning that the weed should not be legalised for any reason.

Shoda advised that individuals who wanted to use it for medication should do so using established legal channels.

The National Daily report that the House of Representatives had expressed readiness to legalise the use of cannabis sativa in the country, owing to its economic benefits.

“As Nigerian women, we say no to the legalisation of cannabis sativa.

“We already have lots of challenges in the country that are associated with drugs abuse; legalising the weed will further worsen our situation, in spite of it tremendous benefits.

“I am sure we are not ready as a nation to handle the legalisation of the weed at this time,’’ she said.

Shoda said that lots of Nigerians youths including women, were involved in drug abuse, adding that legalising the weed would give them the license to do so with impunity.

“In my view we should not legalise cannabis sativa yet, when there is little to no research data on the the various areas the plant is cultivated since most people grow them in secrecy in our environment.

“We should rather start with given relevant stakeholders the mandate to coordinate research across schools of pharmacy in the country to develop validated analytical methods to do quantitative phytochemistry.

“Our conversation as a nation should be centred on what science is required and what scientific capability the country has that might safely drive the legality of cannabis sativa use in our country,’’ she said.

Shoda called on Nigerian women to pray for the country and its leaders so they could find ways to address insecurity in the country.