IilAilII
TND NATIOI|PS
No chance of medical marijuana bill
revival after Duterte's reiection
UHAY Party - List Rep.'Lito
Atienza believes that President
Duterte's public reiection of legal-
i2ed medical marijuana has efrec-
tively doomed any chancqofthe measure's
revival in the next Congress.
"The President has demonstrated eorrect
political leadership in throwing out the bill seek-
ing t0 legalize medical marijuana," said Atien2a,
who is a Senior Deputy Minority Leader
"Now that the President has spoken, we
reckon that nobody wi be foolish enough
to introduce a similar measure in the next
Congress," the former three.term mayor
of Manila said.
The upcoming lSth Congress will run
alongside tlte frnal th.ree years ofDuterte's
tenwe in the Palace.
On Friday. Duterte said he woutd not le-
galize medical cannabis or marijuana in the
country as it can be misused for purposes
TETIII
otlier than to treat ailrnents.
The President also said that tlrug traf-
flckers can exploit medical marijuana to
further expand their illegal trade.
"The President's case is consistent with
our view that legalization (of medical mari-
juana) is bound to open a 'Pandora's box' of
drug abuse that can lead to an,unvanted pub-
lic health emergency, not to menJion another
law enforcement problem," Atienza said.
The Philippine Drug Enforcement
Agency GDEA) previously tagged at least
96 "narco-politicians" across the counh:y.
Atienza earlier warned that a number
of unnamed politicians are iaring to profit
ffom medical marijuana by running dis-
pensaries.
"All the purported therapeutic values
o[ marijuana are merely anecdotal. They
have not been scientifically proven," he
claimed.
-What has been proven by science is
, that marijuana is a dangerous substance,
" P5g6 - *"
Tuesday, March 12,2019
- Atienza
m:rinly because it is highly addictive and
can cause powerful hallucinations, includ-
ing loss ofsense ofpersonal identity, among
other short- and long-term side elfects,"
argued Atienza.
'The Philippine Medical Association,
the professional organization of Filipino
physicians, is also opposed to legalizing
medical marijuana, saying "it is contrary
to the policy of the State to safeguard the
well-being of its citizenry"
It was last January when the House of
Representatives passed on third and frnal
reading House Bill (HB) No.65U, or the
proposed Act providingcompassionate and
right of access to medical cannabis, expand-
.ing research into its medicinal properties
and for otherpurposes. .4
The measure was principally authoredby
Isabela lst district Rep. Rodolfo Albano III.
Marijuana, a downbr, is considered a
banned substance under the Dangerous
Drugs Act of2002.