UN advises Nigeria to Legalise Marijuana Use for Medical Purposes

The United Nations (UN) has approved the use of marijuana for medical purposes and has urged Nigeria to legalise it for the same purpose, Vanguard reports.

Harsheth Kaur Virk, the Project Officer of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime in Nigeria made this known in a one-day public hearing held by the Senate Committee on Drugs, Narcotics and Health on the need to curb the pharmaceutical drug abuse among the Nigerian youth.

Cannabis is a miracle drug when allowed for medical purposes, she said.

Nigeria as a sovereign Nation has its stringent laws against it but international conventions of the UN have approved it for medical purposes based on outcome of researches conducted to that effect by globally recognized institutes.

She urged that it be legalised only for medical purposes, and not recreational.

She also advised that people addicted to drugs be treated as sick and rehabilitated, and not convicted. She said:

The Drugs and Crime office of the UN sees addictive drugs users as people who are sick, in need of treatment, care and rehabilitation.