The Philippine Constitution is the supreme law to which all other laws must conform and in accordance with which all private rights must be determined and all public authority administered. Article 2, Section 4 states that. The prime duty of the Government is to serve and protect the people. your honors ladies and gentlemen, good morning. Our proposition for today is the legalization of Marijauana or cannabis in the Philippines. Marijauana refers to every kind, class, genus, specie of the plant Cannabis sativa , Cannabis Americana, hashish, bhang, guaza, churrus, ganjab and embraces every kind, class and character of marijuana, whether dried or fresh and flowering, flowering or fruiting tops, or any part or portion of the plant and seeds thereof, and all its geographic varieties, whether as a reefer, resin, extract, tincture or in any form whatsoever; Medical Cannabis has been proven to cure illness such as multiple sclerosis, glaucoma, HIV aids, relieves pain for those people who undergo therapy such as chemotherapy and the likes. That will be tackled thoroughly by our next speaker. I together with my team stand that Legalization of Marijuana for Medical purposes is necessary. Over 80,000 cancer cases was reported by the Department of Health and Philippine Cancer Society in 2010 alone that made us one of the most number of cancer patients in Asia. As of January 2013, the Department of Health (DOH) AIDS Registry in the Philippines reported 10,514 people living with HIV/AIDS. While National Nutrition and Health Survey, published in 2003, which said there were 230 persons with epilepsy per 100,000 populations in the Philippines. It is very obvious that it is essential to our surviving patients an alternative medicine to cure them or at least ease the pain. From cancer patients alone we could minimize its number if we only open ourselves for a new way of treatment. Recently it was reported that HIV cases in our country is spreading fast, we can even prevent this if we only allow ourselves to see the advantages of marijuana. These numbers are alarming that calls for the necessity of Marijuana for medical purposes. Article 2 Section 15 of our constitution states that. The State shall protect and promote the right to health of the people and instill health consciousness among them. In connection to this, I wanna incorporate the House bill no. 4477 or the Compassionate Use of Medical Cannabis Act introduced by Honorable Rodolfo Albano III that I prayed to pass the Congress. It is very clear that the use of Marijuana in the said bill is regulated. How it is done? You must be a qualified patient that has a bonafide relationship with a qualified physician and found to have a debilitating medical condition.
One more valuable point would be progress, progress in our technology and research especially so that Marijuana found to be effective for medication. Article 14, Section 10 of our constitution states that. Science and technology are essential for national development and progress. The State shall give priority to research and development, invention, innovation, and their utilization; and to science and technology education, training, and services. It shall support indigenous, appropriate, and self-reliant scientific and technological capabilities, and their application to the country's productive systems and national life. Moreover we can find in Article 14 Section 12. The State shall regulate the transfer and promote the adaptation of technology from all sources for the national benefit. Salus populi suprema lex esto, welfare of the people shall be the supreme law. One of the testimonies is the Gross family. Weeks after Chase Gross, 8 with epilepsy, started taking a marijuana oil extract through a dropper, his mother said she saw a dramatic decrease in the number of daily seizures he had, allowing him to make developmental leaps such as dressing himself and learning new sign language words, since his condition has left him unable to speak. Another is the Pigi family from florida, their daughter Charlotte who has a dravet syndrome. The drug has decreased her seizures from 300 a week to just one every seven days. Forty other children in the state are using the same strain of marijuana to treat their seizures — and it seems to be working. According to research of Gupta.
*nothing is to be afraid of because recreational use of Marijuana is still considered a crime that is penalized under our laws. Let us not be selfish, let us give our surviving patients the means to live longer than they expect. More so, that it is found that no one dies from taking marijuana for medical purposes.
