Dear Editor,
It was announced on February 28 that the world’s largest marijuana company has signalled its intention to be listed on the NASDAQ stock exchange. Also, more than 33 states in the USA have legalised marijuana, for medical and/or recreational use. Uruguay, North Korea and other countries have fully legalised marijuana.
What these states and countries have in common are strong and growing economies, because of the revenue being collected from taxes and trade. It is also important to note that the Netherlands, which was one of the first to legalize Marijuana, has a crime rate that is less than most countries in the world, to the point where that country is actually closing some of its prisons.
If Guyana wants to find a viable alternative to the sugar industry, which is now in crisis, why not invest in marijuana as an agricultural, research and product manufacturing economy. We have the land and the agricultural know-how to transition to this crop very easily, and its return on investment would be much higher than rice and sugar combined.
The marijuana industry generated US$ 6.7 billion in revenue in North America in 2016, and is projected to grow to US$20 billion by 2021. In Colorado alone, the industry generated US$1 billion in sales in 2015, and that state collected US$150 million in taxes and fees. All this in just a few years, while countries like Guyana are doing the opposite by spending tax payers’ money to send people to prison, while other countries are using those people to grow their economies.
Any Government that does not reform its marijuana laws is doing an injustice to its citizens, and I am surprised that we have not yet tabled a bill to reform our laws to pave the way for a marijuana industry.
We should be thinking of ways to replace the sugar cane fields with marijuana plants and setting up research facilities and factories to produce all the countless products that come from marijuana, which include medicines, clothes, cosmetics and other industrial products. We should be setting up marijuana resorts for tourism like the Netherlands, and differentiate ourselves as an organic producer of quality weed.
Once again, we are not taking the opportunity to seize a moment to diversify our income streams for the country; instead, we are all focused on Exxon and the 1% oil contract. We must open our eyes and see that most, if not all, countries of coloured people, with the exception of some Middle Eastern states, have not seen much prosperity from oil. The list is long, and ranges from Nigeria to Equatorial Guinea to Angola and others.
Let’s not depend solely on our politicians to bring us economic liberation, because we will be waiting for a very, very long time. We must start thinking of our country as our own, and demand a better future.
Sincerely,
Malcolm Watkins
