Security agencies destroy 80-acre ‘wee’ farm

The Narcotics Control Commission (NACOC) destroyed large cannabis cultivation (wee farm) at Liati Dafonu in the Afadjato South District of the Volta Region on February 3, 2022.

According to a Daily Graphic report, a team of officers about 70 stormed the plantation at about 7 am on Thursday to destroy the farm after it was discovered on February 1.

The team was made up of officers from NACOC, Ghana Immigration Service (GIS), the National Investigation Bereau (NIB) and the Hohoe Divisional Police Command

Even though it is unclear who owned the farm, four farmworkers, a male and three females have been arrested and are assisting with investigations.

“The large cannabis farm, dotted in various parts of the forest, reportedly belong to different individuals who have planted corn to serve as boundaries between their respective farms,” DailyGraphic reported.

The farmers are said to have placed irrigation pipes deliberately from a nearby stream to the farms to irrigate the cannabis. This enables them to produce all year round irrespective of the rain pattern.

The team also discovered a number of water pumping machines, two motorcycles, and a tractor in sheds, which serve as resting places for the farmers.

Briefing journalists after the exercise, the Head of Communications and Media Relations at NACOC, Francis Opoku Amoah said “per the new Narcotics Control Commission Act, Act 1019, section 39, it is illegal for any individual to cultivate the herb.”

He explained that although section 43 makes special provision relating to cannabis cultivation, it does not mean people should go into large scale farming.

Meanwhile, 3 people out of the four farmhands who were arrested on February 1, 2022 which include a 13-year-old girl, and two others, a 16-year-old lactating mother and an 18-year-old pregnant woman have been granted bail.

The fourth person, a 29-year-old male has been remanded in police custody at the Hohoe Police Station to assist with investigations.

source: Ghana Web