Dangerous Drugs Board open to medical use of cannabis

MANILA, Philippines — The proposal to allow the medical use of cannabis is gaining ground, as the Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB) – the government agency tasked with creating policies in dealing with illegal drugs – is open to the idea.

During yesterday’s public hearing at the Senate committee on health presided over by Sen. Robinhood Padilla, DDB Chairman Catalino Cuy Jr. said the board has issued a resolution approving the creation of the technical working group (TWG) which could study the proposal to allow medical use of marijuana.

“The DDB is open to the use of cannabis to be administered by a medical expert,” said Padilla. He clarified that the use is subject to regulation and constant monitoring. The DDB promulgated resolution 19 – approving the creation of TWG with people to evaluate the use of cannabidiol composed of experts from the Department of Health, Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Department of Science and Technology.

In the continuation of the Senate hearing for the use of medical marijuana or the Medical Cannabis Compassionate Access Act of the Philippines, Cuy clarified that those who will apply for access must first get a special permit from the FDA.

At present, the use of medical grade cannabis and the THC or tetrahydrocannabinol content should not exceed 0.1 percent but the use of oil form of medicinal cannabis is not yet allowed.

The FDA also allowed another medicine with medical cannabis – Epidiolex – for a rare type of epilepsy and seizures but the DDB said there is no pending request for them for a permit to use it.

The senators also learned that Epidiolex, currently being patented in the US but manufactured in other countries, is quite expensive as a 60ml vial costs $982 or about P50,000.

Dr. Katerina Tanya Gosiengfiao, president of the Philippine League Against Epilepsy, said aside from the price of the medicine, the cost of shipment would be added on and that the medicine could not be easily secured nor carried by an ordinary person. Apart from securing an import permit from the DDB, the doctor said it is also necessary to find a company that will import here since it cannot be handled by an individual.

Acknowledging those apprehensive of possible abuse, anti-drug advocate Sen. Ronald dela Rosa has called on them to open their hearts and minds for compassionate use and support the bill.

“Open our hearts and minds to this possibility. I advocate against illegal drugs but for compassionate use, why not give it a try. Let’s open our minds and hearts, let’s see,” said Dela Rosa.

Duterte worried

The recent high-profile arrests of law enforcers involved in illegal drugs is worrying former president Rodrigo Duterte as it could be signaling the return of “ninja cops,” Dela Rosa said yesterday.

Dela Rosa said he was able to talk to Duterte recently and “he was really saddened that these things are happening, but he doesn’t want to interfere with how this government is running its own show.”

“He (Duterte) was just expressing his concern that the ninja cops, narcopoliticians… pity our children,” Dela Rosa told reporters partly in Filipino. “Ninja cops” is slang for law enforcers involved in the illegal drug trade, particularly those who resell seized drugs.              – With Paolo Romero

“As chairman of the public order committee, we’re concerned. I’m not saying our police force and the PDEA (Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency) are not doing their jobs but we must press them. It’s like the fear factor from President Duterte is now gone so they must compensate through their efforts,” he said.

He cited the ongoing investigation of the Philippine National Police (PNP) into two cops, who allegedly withheld P6.7 billion worth of shabu that was previously seized in raids.

The senator delivered a privilege speech calling for the sustained fight against illegal drugs even as he cited Duterte’s unorthodox methods that yielded results felt by ordinary Filipinos.

“Rodrigo Roa Duterte was the only President of this Republic who dared to wage an all-out war against the proliferation of illegal drugs in the country. One might say that it was like opening a can of worms. Yes, this argument might be true. However, waging the war on drugs also opened our eyes to a reality we refused to acknowledge. Or was it merely hiding in plain sight?” he said in his speech.

“At the start of his term, then President Duterte made us realize that the drug problem was massive and complex – a web of intricate systems that branched out into other different criminal activities. Fortunately for the Philippines, our President was ready and willing to be the first to do the dirty and difficult work in order to untangle the knots of the criminal web,” he said. He cited a conversation with a mayor who lamented that drug syndicates are now back in business while asking authorities to continue to go after both big fishes and low-level pushers.

Dela Rosa also cited a 2019 Supreme Court ruling in the case of People v Ameril that expressed disappointment that the judiciary was swamped with cases involving small fry arrested for minuscule amounts and admonished law enforcement agencies to go after leaders of drug cartels.