Fewer marijuana noted in Cebu

CEBU – If the recent raids by police are made as a gauge, the production of marijuana in the province has declined.

Cebu Provincial Police Office Director Carmelo Valmoria said the most number of marijuana stalks seized by municipal police in recent raids is 1,500 or equivalent to around five kilos of dried marijuana leaves.

Valmoria said that in the ‘80s and ‘90s, policemen here in Cebu would usually round up 5,000 to 10,000 stalks sprawling as far as 10 hectares during a raid.

The top producers of marijuana reportedly include mountain barangays in the towns Balamban, Dalaguete and Badian.

Valmoria said most of the users do not come from the areas where the plant is being cultivated.

He also admitted that the police are having difficulty in apprehending planters or cultivators because marijuana is being grown in isolated areas and even intercropped with other plants.

“Then these are left alone since they are easy to grow and then they come back for harvests,” Valmoria said.

Authorities have been conducting raids in the western town of Balamban and the southern town of Dalaguete but recently managed to seize only close to a thousand stalks.

But while the production of marijuana seems to be dwindling in Cebu, Valmoria said Luzon shows a different picture because police continue to seize up to 2000 kilos of dried marijuanas in bricks, which cover up to 30 hectares.

Marijuana is still considered as a dangerous drug under Section 21 of Republic Act 9165 or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act.

The plant also comes in different names, including dope, dangster, ganja, grass, hash, herb, kif, Mary Jane, pot, reefer, sinsemilla, skunk, and weed. — Ferliza C. Contratista/JMO (THE FREEMAN)