The Ondo State Governor, Mr Rotimi Akeredolu, has charged pharmacists in Nigeria to conduct an in-depth research into the various uses of cannabis sativa also known as Indian hemp, for medicinal purposes.
The governor stated this at the 40th Anniversary and the 2021 Association of Community Pharmacists of Nigeria National Scientific Conference held in Abeokuta, Ogun State capital.
This was contained in a statement made available to journalists by the Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Mr Richard Olatunde, on Wednesday, August 31.
In the statement, Akeredolu said research into cannabis for medicinal purposes was needed as it is one of the pathways to the control its cultivation.
He said: “In Ogbese (community in Ondo State), we can have a farm where NDLEA will be in charge. Nobody can take it out to smoke. From there, it gets to you for medicinal purposes. Pharmacists have been working on herbs, you can research on this too. It is one of the pathways to the controlled cultivation. We should not be left behind. We have started to champion the issue of red oil that has to do with palm. We will champion the green oil too in Ondo State. We are looking to pathway of cultivation of cannabis for medicinal purposes. It can be achieved. I have visited Thailand with the then chairman of the NDLEA. We were at all the important institutions. We went through all the processes of cultivating it for medicinal purposes. We saw it by ourselves.”