Prime minister specifies govt is only moving on medicinal marijuana and expungement of records at this time
NASSAU, BAHAMAS — The government is expected to table a bill in Parliament in the next few weeks that would regulate medicinal marijuana in The Bahamas, said Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis on Friday.
“We are presently attempting to complete the medicinal marijuana bill,” Minnis told reporters on the sidelines of the Exuma International Airport contract signing and groundbreaking ceremony.
“I’m hoping we can have that in Parliament within a matter of weeks.
“I was hoping we would have had it there last week. Unfortunately, there are several amendments we had to make.”
The Bahamas National Commission on Marijuana’s (BNCM) preliminary report was leaked to the media in January 2020 and later tabled in Parliament in early February.
Among its initial 24 recommendations, the BNCM has advised the government to allow individuals prescribed medical cannabis to grow sufficient plants for their use; to allow tourists who are prescribed medical cannabis in their countries to obtain it in The Bahamas; and to allow the importation of regulated cannabis products for ailments.
Cannabis possession would be decriminalized up to one ounce or less for personal use for people 21 years or older and laws would be amended for the immediate expungement of small possession criminal records.
The commission stopped short of recommending the legalization of recreational marijuana, insisting that the issue needs to be explored further before a consensus can be garnered.
Its final report is expected to be presented following a national survey to codify the views of the Bahamian public on the matter.
The survey — conducted between November 24 and December 14 with 1,000 respondents across The Bahamas and obtained by Eyewitness News — revealed that while 84 percent of Bahamians support cannabis legalization for medical use, 56 percent are against its recreational use.
Of the respondents questioned, 84 percent believed cannabis should be used for medical purposes and 80 percent indicated they would use it if directed by a doctor.
On Friday, the prime minister signaled that the government only intends to move on medicinal marijuana and the expungement of records of individuals with small amounts of marijuana.
“These are young people who are prohibited from traveling abroad, advancing their life employment, etc, so we made a global decision to protect that grouping,” he said.
“But at this point in time, it’s just medicinal marijuana, in addition to the expungement of [the records of] these young people.”
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