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CANNABIS INDUSTRY 

BREAKING  NEWS

Signs of Sanity: Cannabis Quietly Dropped From the Drug Trafficking Act Entirely

Signs of Sanity: Cannabis Quietly Dropped From the Drug Trafficking Act Entirely

Parliament has published the latest version of the Cannabis for Private Purposes Bill which continues to criminalize cannabis transgressions, but seeks to remove cannabis entirely from “the purview or scope of the Drugs Act”.

Brett Hilton-Barber

7 April 2023 at 10:00:00

Cannabis stakeholders reacted with dismay when the Drugs and Drug Trafficking Act of 2022 was gazetted in December 2022 as cannabis remained scheduled as "an undesirable, dependence producing substance".  However, just three months later, state legislators have done a U-turn and removed cannabis entirely from the Drugs Act.


In the latest version of the Cannabis for Private Purposes Bill, which is out for public comment until 28 April 2023, the Memorandum on the Objectives of the Bill states:


2.10 Clause 10 and Schedule 5 to the Bill provide for the repeal or amendment of certain provisions of the laws discussed in paragraphs 2.10.1 to 2.10.3, below.

2.10.1 Drugs Act

(a) Part II of Schedule 2 to the Drugs Act, is amended by the deletion of the item: ‘‘Dronabinol [(-)-transdelta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol].’’.

(b) Part III of Schedule 2 to the Drugs Act, is amended by the deletion of the words:

(i) ‘‘Cannabis (dagga), the whole plant or any portion or product thereof, except dronabinol [(-)-transdelta-9- tetrahydrocannabinol]’’; and

(ii) ‘‘Tetrahydrocannabinol’’.

(c) The Bill therefore removes the entire issue of cannabis from the purview or scope of the Drugs Act, making way for cannabis to be regulated under its own separate legislation, as the Bill does.


The inclusion of cannabis as a scheduled substance in the Drugs Act has been seen as the biggest single stumbling block to creating an inclusive, job-creating cannabis and hemp economy. Its removal from the Act is a major step towards the establishment of a single over-arching cannabis law.


However, dealing in cannabis remains prohibited under the CPPB, which depending on the quantity could lead to 15 years in jail. The Bill defines “to deal” as “broadly defined as to provide for consideration, receive for consideration, sell, buy, offer for sale, offer to purchase, import, advertise for sale, export and any other conduct to facilitate selling”.


State legislators have argued that the motivation behind the Bill is to regulate the use of cannabis in terms of the 2018 ConCourt ruling, not to decriminalize it. The Bill makes provision for consenting adults to consume cannabis in private but continues to criminalize any commercial transactions unless under license.

The Justice Department took flak in Parliament this week during stakeholder input into the Cannabis for Private Purposes Bill where it became evident that state law-makers are clueless as to what Government's intended vision for cannabis is. They remain conceptually and technically completely out of their depth - and lazy to boot as they have not bothered to bring any rational evidence to back up what is truly a pathetic legislative interpretation of the 2018 Constitutional Court ruling legalizing the private consumption of cannabis.

Justice Dept Admits No Rational Evidence Behind Plant Limits in Cannabis Bill as State Lawyers Come Under Fire in Parliament

The Justice Department took flak in Parliament this week during stakeholder input into the Cannabis for Private Purposes Bill where it became evident that state law-makers are clueless as to what Government's intended vision for cannabis is. They remain conceptually and technically completely out of their depth - and lazy to boot as they have not bothered to bring any rational evidence to back up what is truly a pathetic legislative interpretation of the 2018 Constitutional Court ruling legalizing the private consumption of cannabis.

Cannabis and solar power to be the key economic recovery drivers in rebuilding the devestated community of Jagersfontein following the flood disaster eight months ago.

Re-Imagining Xhariep: Free State Launches Mega Cannabis Project in Jagersfontein After Last Year’s Mine Dam Tailings Disaster

Cannabis and solar power to be the key economic recovery drivers in rebuilding the devestated community of Jagersfontein following the flood disaster eight months ago.

Government has made no official announcement about the "significant spike" in raising acceptable THC levels in hemp. It signalled its intentions in a clause in the Cannabis for Private Purposes Bill which will be welcomed by stakeholders. However, cultivar restriction could self-sabotage all the good intentions.

SA to Lift Hemp THC Limit to 2% But Cultivar Restrictions Remain a “Lethal Impediment” to the Industry

Government has made no official announcement about the "significant spike" in raising acceptable THC levels in hemp. It signalled its intentions in a clause in the Cannabis for Private Purposes Bill which will be welcomed by stakeholders. However, cultivar restriction could self-sabotage all the good intentions.

Signs of Sanity: Cannabis Quietly Dropped From the Drug Trafficking Act Entirely

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