The Head of the Addictive Diseases Unit of the Department of Medicine at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, Dr. Logosu Amegashie is warning of dire consequences should government legalize marijuana.
He argued that the move will worsen alarming cases of mental disorders especially among the youth.
Dr. Logosu disclosed this in an interview on Adom FM’s Dwaso Nsem Thursday after some people revived the debate.
A section of Ghanaians, including former UN Secretary General, Kofi Annan, former boss of Narcotics Control Board NACOB, Akrasi Sarpong and Rastafarians are for the legalization and are also pushing for the new law now before Parliament to be passed to allow free use of cannabis.
They are convinced marijuana popularly known as wee is harmless and would not be widely abused.
But Dr. Amegashie described those people calling for the legalization of marijuana as unserious people.
He explained that, making it lawful will compound the already rising cases of mental disorders.
As someone who has come face to face with the harm marijuana has done to people, the Head of the Addictive Diseases Unit at Korle Bu said he will never agree to the decriminalization of wee in Ghana.
He cited how the country lacked rehabilitation centres to treat those already addicted to buttress his point.
Dr. Amegashie urged Parliament to listen to the views of the medical practitioners on this issue before they proceed to enact a law or make an informed position.
He also called on Members of Parliament to dedicate part of their common fund to build rehabilitation centres in their constituencies to save the future.
The medical practitioner commended the police for their continuous swoop farmers who are cultivating marijuana at the expense of food crops.
Dr. Amegashie stressed the chronic dependence on the drug can also lead to severe organ damage, respiratory depression, infection of the heart, subsequent collapse of the lungs and kidney, and liver failure.
He appealed to the public especially the youth to as a matter of urgency quit alcohol abuse to live long.
'Marijuana advocates need mental examination'
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