Fernander suggests legalization bid a “special interest movement”
Opposition leader maintains no support for recreational marijuana
NASSAU, BAHAMAS — Bahamas Christian Council (BCC) President Bishop Delton Fernander said yesterday that the organization is prepared to stand against the Davis administration’s marijuana legalization agenda.
Fernander’s comments come after Minister of Agriculture, Marine Resources and Family Island Affairs Clay Sweeting signaled that the Family Islands would be ideal to support the country’s cannabis industry once legalized.
During a courtesy call with Free National Movement (FNM) Leader Michael Pintard, Fernander lambasted Sweeting’s comments and charged that the venture into the industry comes without proper consultation.
“This is a very powerful special interest movement that the first thing a new government wants to do in an effort to move our country forward is cannabis,” Fernander said.
“We have to wake up and see that there is a powerful movement going on in society that transcends governments.
“We will vigorously fight like we did in opposition to certain points of legislation and they were respected. We expect the same out of the government of the day.”
The government has said bills to introduce a regulatory framework for the cannabis industry, as well as the decriminalization of possession of small amounts of the substance, are expected to be finalized in the first quarter of next year.
However, Pintard, the opposition leader who served as minister of agriculture in the Minnis administration, contended that the government has failed to explain how it intends to move the industry forward.
“We have not seen the nature of the legislation that they are going to present,” Pintard said.
“Are they going to present the ones that we left on the table or are they going to make substantial amendments? We do not know.”
He said his position on the matter has not changed since he was intimately involved in the consultation process surrounding the former government’s proposals to support medicinal marijuana; expunge the records of individuals convicted on possession of small amounts of marijuana; develop a robust industrial hemp industry; and amend the Dangerous Drugs Act.
The only thing that is required is that whatever the present government plans to do, we need to know what the content is and to date, we do not know what is being proposed.
– Opposition Leader Michael Pintard
“There is and will be no pushback on those items,” Pintard said.
“The only thing that is required is that whatever the present government plans to do, we need to know what the content is and to date, we do not know what is being proposed…
“We look forward to hearing what would be contained in the legislation that they would bring to see if it is different in any way from what we had proposed.”
But Fernander insisted the issue must be presented to stakeholders first.
“Even if it was left on the table by the previous administration, common courtesy says that we need to know, as stakeholders, what is going to go to Parliament and what it is we can agree or disagree on.”
The BCC supports the medicinal use of marijuana, but opposes its recreational use and the legalization of the drug, and remains uninterested in the cannabis industry.
The Bahamas National Commission on Marijuana (BNCM) presented the former administration with a final report on the viewpoint of Bahamians on the issue.
It stopped short of recommending the legalization of recreational marijuana, stating that the issue needs to be explored further before a consensus can be garnered.
The Minnis government had drafted legislation for the regulation of a local cannabis industry, including a proposed Medicinal Cannabis Bill, 2021, and the Dangerous Drugs (Amendment) Bill, 2021.
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