TAPPITA – A 42-year-old man, Jerry Zlogon, believed to be a marijuana cultivator, has been arrested in Tappita, Nimba County, by agents of the Liberia Drugs Enforcement Agency (LDEA).
The alleged marijuana cultivator was nabbed on 12 October, reportedly in possession of over 500,000 seeds of marijuana, following a tipoff from some residents in Tappita.
Zlogon blamed his decision to venture into the cultivation and sale of cannabis on “hardship”, according to sources.
Our sources quote Zlogon as telling police investigators that he cultivates the substance on his farm around Gbonipea, few kilometers away from Tappita.
Meanwhile, the 42-year-old alleged marijuana cultivator has been processed by the police and forwarded to the Tappita Magisterial Court to stand trial.
The possession of any kind of cannabis including cultivation is illegal in Liberia, and under Liberian laws that includes the production, sale, and possession of medicinal marijuana products, as well as cannabis cultivation for recreational purposes.
Despite this, marijuana is still widely grown and used across the country, often as a means for farmers to sustain their families.
Liberia faces daunting challenges in enforcing laws on the cultivation, sale, and/ or use of cannabis due to underfunded law enforcement and corruption.
However, while penalties are minimal, growing, selling, and buying marijuana is illegal in Liberia, as in most African countries, and even though enforcement may be lax, the laws remain in place in Liberia.
Edited by Olando Testimony Zeongar.
