ZIMBABWE BECOMES THE SECOND COUNTRY IN AFRICA TO LEGALIZE MARIJUANA(CANNABIS) FARMING.

Zimbabwean Government has legalised the production of cannabis (mbanje, dagga or Marijuana) for medicinal or scientific purposes. This was announced by Health and Child Care Minister Dr David Parirenyatwa in a Government Gazette yesterday under Statutory Instrument 62 of 2018 (Dangerous Drugs – Production of Cannabis for Medicinal and Scientific Use Regulations).

Zimbabwe's Health and Child Care Minister Dr David Parirenyatwa.
Image: Herald ZW.

Producers of mbanje must be licensed by the minister.

“An application for the issue of a licence in terms of section 27 of the Act shall be made to the Minister, in duplicate and shall be accompanied by the appropriate fee and three copies of a plan of the site proposed to be licensed which shall comply with the requirement specified in these regulations.

“In case of an individual, proof of citizenship or proof of being ordinarily resident in Zimbabwe or proof of an exemption by the Minister (will be required),”
Reads the regulations.

“In the case of a company, proof of citizenship or proof of being ordinarily resident in Zimbabwe of the majority of directors or proof of an exemption by the Minister and proof of incorporation in Zimbabwe of the company; and a declaration, signed and dated by the proposed authorised person in charge, stating that the authorised person in charge, the proposed responsible person in charge and, if applicable, the proposed alternate responsible person in charge, are familiar with the provisions of the Act (will be required),”
Reads the regulations.

The application for the licence must also provide a detailed description of the method that the applicant proposes to use for keeping records.

The Minister has powers to audit the activities of the licensed producer with respect to cannabis.

“The application shall also contain the following – (a) if applicable, the maximum quantity expressed as net weight in grammes of fresh cannabis, dried cannabis, cannabis oil to be produced by the applicant under the licence and the production period . . . and the maximum number of cannabis plants to be sold or provided by the applicant under the licence and the period in which that quantity is to be sold or provided,”
Read the regulations.

In case of an application for a licence to sell or provide fresh cannabis or cannabis oil under, the applicant must provide the Minister before commencing to sell or provide the substance, with the dried cannabis equivalence factor determined under section 73 and the method that they used to determine it.

If an applicant intends to possess, produce, sell, provide, ship, deliver, transport or destroy cannabis at more than one site, a separate application must be submitted for each proposed site.

A licensed producer designate one authorised person in charge to have overall responsibility for management of the activities conducted by the licenced producer under their licence at their site who may, if appropriate, be licensed producer.

“One responsible person in charge to work at the licensed producer’s site and have responsibility for supervising the activities with respect to cannabis conducted by the licensed producer under their licence at that site and for ensuring that the activities comply with the Act and these regulations who may, if appropriate, be the authorised person in charge,”
Further reads the regulations.

The licensed producer may also designate one or more alternate responsible persons in charge to work at the licensed producer’s site and have authority to replace the responsible person in charge when that person is absent.

The Minister shall refuse to issue, renew or amend a producer’s licence when certain requirements have not been met, among them failure by the producer to grant permission for inspection by relevant authorities; and when the Minister has reasonable grounds to believe that false or misleading information was submitted in, or false or falsified documents were submitted with the application.

Issuance of a licence would also be denied when information has been received from a peace officer, a competent authority or the United Nations that the applicant has been involved in the diversion of a controlled substance or precursor to an illicit market or use.

The Minister may not oblige if the issuance, renewal or amendment of the licence is likely to create a risk to public health, safety or security, including the risk of cannabis being diverted to an illicit market use.

The producer licence will be valid for five years and may be renewed thereafter before its expiry.

Over the years the production and use of marijuana has been illegal in the country and possession of the drug attracted sentences of up to 12 years in jail.

Lesotho granted its first licences for marijuana production in September last year (2018), believed to be the first African country to do so.

The legality of cannabis varies wildly from country to country worldwide.
Countries such as Uruguay, Canada, Australia, Netherlands, Colombia and Czech Republic have amended their laws to allow consumption for medical purposes.
Marijuana is also legal for medical purposes in 29 out of 50 States of the U.S.A including the capital Washington DC, although their approaches can significantly differ. Some allow medical marijuana dispensaries and home cultivation. Others only allow home cultivation. And a few allow dispensaries but not home

SOURCE:

Herald ZW.

Comments

CUBA CLAIMS CANADIAN PRIME MINISTER IS FIDEL CASTRO'S SON.

The suicide note left by Fidel Castro’s eldest son has rocked the Cuban nation this week, with the most astonishing revelation being the claim that Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was his half-brother and the son of the late Fidel Castro. The handwritten note left by Fidel Castro Diaz-Balart, 68, the eldest of Fidel Castro’s children, appears to confirm the longstanding rumor in Cuba that Fidel Castro fathered Justin Trudeau after a public tryst with Margaret Trudeau in 1970. “ Castro Diaz-Balart, who had been attended by a group of doctors for several months due to a state of profound depression, committed suicide this morning ,” Cubadebate website reported. The death of the high-profile government nuclear scientist, also known as “Fidelito”, or Little Fidel, because of how much he looked like his father, stunned the nation, however it is his “ explosive ” suicide note that has set tongues wagging in Havana. Amid a wide-ranging barrage of compl...

THE PRESIDENT OF GHANA TO ATTEND HUGH MASEKELA'S FUNERAL.

Accra, GHANA: President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo is expected to attend the funeral of late South African jazz musician Hugh Masekela. The president, who eulogized the late musician for his extraordinary music, will be in South Africa on Sunday for the private funeral. The music legend, who was also a leading figure in the struggle to end apartheid in South Africa, passed away on Tuesday, January 23 aged 78 The 1968 Grammy Award winner’s family, in a statement, said he “passed away peacefully” in Johannesburg “after a protracted and courageous battle with prostate cancer”. Remembering the freedom fighter in a series of Tweets, President Akufo-Addo said he will remember him for his exceptional friendship. “Freedom fighter, great artist, great musician, wonderful trumpeter, great friend, many thanks for the extraordinary music, marvellous memories, and exceptional friendship,” he said. The president said, Hugh Masekela “will be sorely missed by al...

MALARIA VACCINE PROVES HIGHLY EFFECTIVE IN BURKINA FASO.

A vaccine against malaria has been shown to be highly effective in trials in Africa, holding out the real possibility of slashing the death toll of a disease that kills 400,000 mostly small children every year. The vaccine, developed by scientists at the Jenner Institute of Oxford University, showed up to 77% efficacy in a trial of 450 children in Burkina Faso over 12 months. The hunt for a malaria vaccine has been going on the best part of a century. One, the Mosquirix vaccine developed by GlaxoSmithKline, has been through lengthy clinical trials but is only partially effective, preventing 39% of malaria cases and 29% of severe malaria cases among small children in Africa over four years. It is being piloted by the World Health Organization in parts of Kenya, Ghana and Malawi. The Oxford vaccine is the first to meet the WHO goal of 75% efficacy against the mosquito-borne parasite disease. Larger trials are now beginning, involving 4,800 children in four countries. Prof ...

"GO BACK TO YOUR ROOTS IN ETHIOPIA", KHOI KHOI DESCENDANTS URGES MALEMA.

Following the continuing restlessness by EFF Julius Malema and the Black Land First leader, jointly demanding for a return of the land, a new group comprising of Khoi Khoi descendants have issued a lengthy white paper detailing the true situation of the land transition and ownership. According to the group’s spokesperson Hung Sangawe, who vehemently warned Malema to go back to Ethiopia were it is alleged he has biological roots. Hung Sangawe. Sangawe noted with dismay that the group was sick and tired of the perpetual racial tension orchestrated and perpetuated by Malema to further enrich himself, by exploiting the high level of illiteracy and youth unemployment in South Africa. Subsequently, the tenacious group unanimously issued a strongly worded white paper, that he Malema must stop claiming the land he knows nothing about: “White people didn’t steal the land, other black tribes invaded it' The so-called Bantu speaking South Afri...

PRESIDENT RAMAPHOSA'S SON INSULTS EX-PRESIDENT ZUMA'S SON.

President Cyril Ramaphosa's son Tumelo has caused a social media flurry by calling former president Jacob Zuma's son Duduzane a "fool" in a bragging post on Instagram. Yesterday, Ramaphosa's spokeswoman Khusela Diko said Tumelo was a "grown man" who had to answer for himself for his actions. "The president, however, finds such behaviour extremely unfortunate and distasteful and not in keeping with the values he espouses or the manner in which he would expect anyone to conduct themselves." Tumelo, in a brief video posted on his account this week, which was later deleted, took a dig at the son of his father's predecessor after arriving at a Dubai hotel. The video, which had already been saved and was re-posted and retweeted several times by some Instagram and Twitter users, sparked debate. Some users questioned the lack of outrage at Tumelo's remarks and comments, with others speculating on what would have happene...

U.S SPY SATELLITES CATCH CHINESE SHIPS ILLEGALLY SELLING OIL TO NORTH KOREA.

According to South Korea’s chosun llbo , U.S. recon satellites have photographed around 30 illegal transactions involving Chinese vessels selling oil to North Korea on the West Sea in October. The images allegedly showed large Chinese and North Korean ships transacting in oil in a part of the West Sea closer to China than South Korea. The satellite pictures even showed the names of the ships. A government source said, “We need to focus on the fact that the illicit trade started after a UN Security Council resolution in September drastically capped North Korea’s imports of refined petroleum products.” Meanwhile, on paper, China’s trade with North has recently collapsed after U.S. President Donald Trump unleashed a barrage of sanctions in September targeting North Korea’s imports of refined petroleum products. Back in November, the US. Treasury Department sanctioned an additional six North Korean shipping and trading com...

A BOOK WITH ALL 128 BLANK PAGES REVEALING MEN KNOWLEDGE ON WOMEN.

A book called 'Everything Men Know About Women' by Dr Alan Francis has 128 completely blank pages. Published in 1989, the book claims to "reveal the most comprehensive understanding of men's knowledge and understanding of the opposite sex." The book has a rating of 4.3 out of 5 on Amazon's book discovery platform Goodreads. Cover of the 25th Anniversary "Everything Men know about women" Image: Amazon . According to Amazon books "Everything Men Know About Women" , 25th Anniversary Edition Description: Product description "Fully reveals the shocking truth!" --Daily News A landmark book completely revised and updated to reveal everything men really know about the opposite sex. In a little more than 100 pages, Dr. Alan Francis distills years of research and thousands of interviews to reveal the most comprehensive understanding of men's knowledge and understanding of t...

"KEEP POPE OUT OF PETTY POLITICS", MALAWI BISHOPS URGE.

Lilongwe, MALAWI: Malawi’s bishops have urged the country’s politicians to keep Pope Francis out of “petty politics.” The statement from the bishops’ conference came after Hophmally Makande, an official of the ruling Democratic Progressive Part, said those urging 79 -year-old President Peter Mutharika to resign should also ask Pope Francis, who is 81, to step down. Arthur Peter Mutharika born 18 July 1939 is a Malawian politician, educator and lawyer who has been President of Malawisince 31 May 2014. Image: AP. “Some of you are criticizing and speaking bad that President Peter Mutharika is old… is the pope a ten-year-old… is the pope a ten-year-old? Between the pope and Peter who is older? Isn’t it the pope … why does he not resign then? I am not despising the Church. But leave our president alone,” Makande told a campaign rally in Blantyre. In a Sept. 13 statement the bishops said: “We call upon all political leaders, those governing...

ZIMBABWEAN MUSICIAN IN EXILE SAYS "THERE IS NOTHING TO CELEBRATE"

EUGENE, Ore. (AP) — As Zimbabweans celebrated the ouster of dictator Robert Mugabe, they danced on the streets to previously banned protest songs by one of the country’s most famous musicians — a man jailed by the country’s former white rulers and hounded by the black government that succeeded them. But Thomas Mapfumo, who watched the euphoria from exile in the U.S., said he has seen nothing to suggest his country will overcome its long history of repression and political corruption because Mugabe’s political party and cronies still run the country. “I think there’s nothing to celebrate about,” Mapfumo said this week in an interview with The Associated Press at his small apartment in the college town of Eugene, Oregon where he has lived since 2004. “It’s still the old train that we’re riding but they’ve got a different driver now.” When Mugabe resigned on Nov. 21 under military pressure, ending his iron-fisted rule of 37 years, Mapfumo’s songs blasted from car...

FATHER USED BABY AS HUMAN SHIELD; CHILD SHOT 4 TIMES.

Philadelphia, U.S: The father of an 11-month-old boy, who was shot four times in Philadelphia last month, is now under arrest in connection with the shooting, the district attorney's office announced on Tuesday. Nafes Monroe. Yaseem Munir Jenkins was shot four times, including once in the head, while inside a vehicle in the city's Hunting Park section on October 19, 2019. Authorities say the toddler was in the back seat of a car, along with his father, Nafes Monroe, his stepmother and another man when shots rang out. Investigators say Monroe used his son as a human shield to thwart off a potential upset drug dealer. Yazeem Munir Jenkins is in a critical condition. Image: Philadelphia Police. "He was using counterfeit money to purchase drugs, knowing that counterfeit money is something that is very upsetting to drug dealers, and when they find out that they're being burned with counterfeit money, they act violently. And this was not...

Kioo17 Journal

Search This Blog