The Drug Enforcement Commission in North-Western Province has arrested two people for trafficking in over 1.5 tons of cannabis, contrary to the laws of Zambia.
Patson Mula, 43, a small-scale farmer of Kandemba area in Solwezi District has been arrested for unlawful cultivation of fresh cannabis plants weighing 1.8 tons.
Also arrested in Solwezi District is Abel Kasaso, 34, of Kimakolwe area for unlawful cultivation of fresh cannabis plants weighing 33.4 kilograms.
And in Eastern Province the Commission has arrested and jointly charged Chalungama Muyayi, 34, a driver of Muyayi Farm with Marliot Lungu, 24, of John Laing in Lusaka for trafficking in 1.12 tons of cannabis concealed in 18 by 90-kilogram sacks and one fifty-kilogram sack laden on a canter intercepted in Lumezi District.
Also arrested is Ronald Besa, 49, a small-scale farmer of Masaba Village in Luapula Province for unlawful cultivation of fresh cannabis plants weighing 640 kilograms.
The Commission has reiterated a warning to small-scale farmers to desist from engaging themselves in the cultivation of illicit crops such as cannabis which have a devastating effect on the nation’s social wellbeing.
Meanwhile, the Commission in Lusaka Province has arrested a 33-year-old Malawian national identified as Yusuf Hafeez Twayib Nawe of Lusaka-West for trafficking in twenty-four boxes of dry miraa weighing 291 kilograms concealed in boxes falsely labelled pure Zambian Green Tea, Moringa, Ethiopian Tea and other labels of tea.
This follows the recent arrest of ten suspects for trafficking in over 1.3 tons of miraa concealed in boxes bearing similar false labels.
All suspects are in Police custody and will appear in court soon.
This is contained in a statement issued by DEC Public Relations Officer Theresa Katongo.
I understand the profit from this staff is quite handsome and is the trouble.
I don’t understand the headline
Two arrested people for trafficking in over 1.5 tons of cannabis????
Zambia will top Colombia in this kind of business before 2021.
The 2 Chinese men who were arrested in Lusaka for cannabis cultivation were only fined K2000 each. Mark my words, these villagers will be imprisoned even 5 years with hard labour.
Meanwhile 2 Zambian students caught trafficking LSD in China were jailed for life
I understand the business is very lucrative.
Am sure you mean “Two people Arrested” lol!!. Well life yavuta anything for a quick buck!! Sad thing !!!
Please legalize this herb immediately ….wake up from your docility Lazy Lungu…DEC should be concerned with class A drugs like cocaine. By the time we wake up MOH will be importing cannabis pills from big pharmaceuticals at premium. A small country Malawi is set to become the latest African country to legalize marijuana farming in a bid to boost its economy (Qz.com2018). This comes as its major foreign exchange earner tobacco, starts to see the impact of a decades-long global anti-smoking lobby led by organizations including the WHO.
Industrial hemp can offer much to the country’s economy, it is reported that an acre with 2,500 plants can fetch up to $60,000 in the USA, in states where hemp has been legalized. On average an acre of 2,500 tobacco plants fetches around $5,000 in Malawi.
A South African-based Canadian investor Graham MacKintosh of Green Quest Farmerceuticals believes Malawi has the climatic conditions to grow the crop and shouldn’t miss out on the economic benefits it will reap out from it, as currently the market is “booming”.
“This crop has Cannabidiol oil, which is in high demand and it is estimated that in the next three years the CBD oil we extract from the crop is poised to grow at over 700%.” Says Mackintosh
African countries including Zimbabwe, Morocco, Lesotho and South Africa have either legalized or considering legalizing marijuana farming.
Quartz Africa 2018
I couldn’t agree with you more on this. When most powerful countries in the world are legalizing Marijuana, we are very locking people up for stupidity. Already the jails are over populated of people with minor offences such as possession of weed. Come on guys legalize it and use the product as a revenue to boost the Zambian economy. Please ba Lungu do so and you will ever be popular.
miraa doesn’t do anything…I’ve chewed on it twice while in Mombasa.
it has similar effects to red bull, but don’t make you high like weed with cbd and/or thc
Dont you know that energy drinks are restricted to children in UK who purchase more than 1…miraa was popularized by East African truck drivers who used to want to drive all night without sleep
Just leave them, the chinese nationals were caught with 2.5 tonnes of cannabis in Chipata and were told to pay K2,000.00 as fine could not send them to jail because they were doing construction works. Your own people you will hear ati 15 years with hard labour. What a country.
Legalize it n get people employed so they can support their families. Here in Canada it’s legal n life’s going on without a fuss. People who were wrongfully thrown into jail because of possession have been set free.