Nababahala ngayon ang mga mambabatas sa magkakasunod na pagkakadiskubre ng mga marijuana laced e-cigarette o vape.
Sa isang pulong-balitaan sinabi ni Davao Oriental Representative Cheeno Almario na dapat ay makapagkasa na agad ng imbestigasyon dahil posibleng hindi ito isolated na insidente.
“I think this would merit an investigation between multiple committes. One would most likely be Health, Trade and Industry and maybe also Dangerous Drugs. This would also be a starting point on how PDEA will start to look into the investigating on the production, on the possible import or how was this distributed. Because this is a very concerning matter,” ani Almario.
Nito lang nakaraang linggo, nahuli sa dalawang suspek sa isang raid sa Taguig ang ₱842,000 na halaga ng cannbis pil, marijuana kush, at vape devices.
Bago naman ito nasabat naman ng PDEA at Bureau of Customs ang 18 balikbayan boxes na naglalaman ng cannabis oil at marijuana kush na nakatago sa e-cigarettes.
Nangangamba naman si Lanao del Sur Representative Zia Alonto Adiong na maaaring ito ay bagong pamamaraan ng pagpupuslit ng droga.
Ang isa lang inaalala ng mambabatas ay nagiging fad na ang paggamit ng vape at pawang kabataan ang mga tumatangkilik nito.
Hirit din ni Adiong na dapat ay maparusahan ang mga taong nasalikod ng paggawa, pagpapakalat o pagbebenta ng mga marijuana-infused vapes lalo at nananatili pa rin iligal ang marijuana sa Pilipinas.
“I support should there be any probe. I will support that kasi I’m more concern on illegal drug trafficking in the country. So nagiging creative na rin yung mga illegal drug traffickers. I really want the Congress to dig deeper into this. Aside from yung kasi bawal daw talaga ang marijuana, it’s classified as an illegal drug,” sabi ni Adiong.
“Kasi ang vape po is an option for smokers that minsan nagiging fad na siya eh. Maski yung mga hindi talaga mga smokers yung magshi-shift sila from cigarettes to e-cigarettes. Nagiging fad na po iyan. They see that as a good market to capitalize on, and these illegal drug traffickers are using this vape,” dagdag ng mambabatas.
Sinegundahan ito ni Ako Bicol Party-list Representative Jil Bongalon.
Aniya kasama sa dapat tukuyin din ay ang tekonolohiya na ginaganit para ikubli ang marijuana sa loob ng mga e-cigarette at vapes.
“One crucial matter to look into is technology. We know as technology advances, nagiging creative din ito pong mga illegal drug dealers natin. So, in a way not to be identified or hindi po sila makikita agad, pinapasok nila sa vape. Making it appear that this is just a usual e-cigaratte ano. So, this should serve as a reminder to everyone, especially to the youth, to the students, that the use of Marijuana is still illegal,” dagdag ni Bongalon.
Paalala naman ni Deputy Speaker David Suarez na lalong kailangang masiguro ang safeguards ng batas sa gitna ng panukalang legalisasyon ng medical cannabis.
“I think it is necessary for us to ensure that the proper safeguards are in place. Tulad ng sinabi Congressman Bongalon, ngayon po tinatalakay po dito sa Kongreso yung legalizing ng cannabis for medical use. But with the proliferation of lace vape with THC or with Marijuana just goes to show that we need to improve the safeguards just so that hindi ma-abuse yung isang controlled substance dito sa ating bansa,” diin ni Suarez. | ulat ni Kathleen Jean Forbes
