Congress of the Philippines

Twelfth Congress
First Regular Session

REPUBLIC ACT NO. 9165 June 7, 2002

AN ACT INSTITUTING THE COMPREHENSIVE DANGEROUS

DRUGS ACT OF 2002, REPEALING REPUBLIC ACT NO. 6425,
OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE DANGEROUS DRUGS ACT OF
1972, AS AMENDED, PROVIDING FUNDS THEREFOR, AND
FOR OTHER PURPOSES

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the

Philippines in Congress

Section 1. Short Title. – This Act shall be known and cited as the
"Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002".

Section 2. Declaration of Policy. – It is the policy of the State to

safeguard the integrity of its territory and the well-being of its
citizenry particularly the youth, from the harmful effects of
dangerous drugs on their physical and mental well-being, and to
defend the same against acts or omissions detrimental to their
development and preservation. In view of the foregoing, the State
needs to enhance further the efficacy of the law against
dangerous drugs, it being one of today's more serious social ills.

To Serve and Protect the People as the Prime Duty of the

Government (Sec. 4, Art. II)
The prime duty of the state to serve and protect the people is
consistent with the basic democratic principle that “government
exists for the people and not the people for the government”.
DDB: Philippines has 1.8 million current drug
users
There are 1.8 million current drug users in the Philippines or 1.8% of the total population
of 100.98 million, results of the Dangerous Drugs Board’s latest survey on the drug use
situation in the Philippines show.

According to the 2015 Nationwide Survey on the Nature and Extent of Drug Abuse in
the Philippines presented on Monday, September 19, the current drug use prevalence
among Filipinos aged 10 to 69 years old is at 2.3%, or an estimated 1.8 million users.
Filipinos aged 10 to 69 years old comprise around 75% of the total Philippine population
as of 2015.

Current drug users refer to individuals who are currently using or have used illegal
drugs more than once from January 1, 2015, until February 5, 2016.

The 2015 figure is higher than the 1.3 million drug users estimated in 2012 and 1.7
million estimated in 2008.

Commissioned by DDB, the survey on national drug abuse situation was conducted by
Resources, Environment and Economics Center for Studies Incorporated (REECS) from
December 5, 2015, to February 5, 2016, among 5,000 respondents across the
Philippines. It had a ±0.9 margin error.

Meanwhile, data from the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) states
that 11,132 out of 42,036 barangays in the country are drug-affected as of December
2015.

‘Lifetime’ drug users

The 2015 survey results show that the lifetime drug use prevalence is around 6.1% of
the same sample population.
This means that 4.8 million Filipinos have used illegal drugs at least once in their lives –
less than the estimated 7.1 million in 2008.
According to DDB Chairperson Benjamin Reyes, the government’s anti-illegal drug
campaign should also focus on prevention to “curb the problem.”
“As much as possible, we are trying to prevent the 4.8 million to not try using illegal
drugs again,” he said. “Ang key message natin ay huwag na gumamit at huwag na mag-
try kasi mataas ang retention”

Retention rate refers to the percentage of drug users that will continually use a specific
illegal drug.

The 2015 drug situation survey results show that drug retention rate is currently
at 28% for shabu and 24.7% for marijuana.
PH doctors say no to
medical marijuana bill
Medical doctors led by Philippine Medical Association (PMA)
president Dra. Minerva Calimag show the signed joint statement
of the medical community opposing the proposed House Bill 4477
or the Compassionate Use of Medical Cannabis Bill, which allows
the use of medicinal marijuana in the country.

"We oppose [House Bill] 4477. We cannot risk endangering the health and
safety of the Filipino,” read the statement released by the following
organizations:

 Philippine Medical Association

 Philippine College of Physicians
 Child Neurology Society of the Philippines
 Group for Addiction Psychiatry of the Philippines
 Pain Society of the Philippines
 Philippine League Against Epilepsy, Inc.
 Philippine Neurological Association
 Philippine Psychiatric Association
 Philippine Society of Clinical and Occupational Toxicology (PSCOT)
 UP-PGH National Poison Management and Control Center (NPMCC)

Half of these medical groups earlier proposed the creation of a task force
that will review existing policies and systems, and explore other options
regarding medical marijuana. (READ: PH doctors want task force on
medical marijuana)

House Bill 4477, or the Compassionate Use of Medical Cannabis Bill, was
filed in May by Isabela 1st District Representative Rodolfo Albano III after
months of dialogue with advocates and stakeholders. (READ: When
medicines fail, marijuana is moms' last hope)
According to the bill, marijuana "has been confirmed to have beneficial and
therapeutic uses to treat chronic or deblitating disease or medical
condition.”

But the medical groups questioned the bill, which they said does not
address the compassionate use of medical marijuana.

They said that while they understand the concerns of patients who may
"potentially benefit" from medical marijuana, it is their "moral and ethical
responsibility” to ensure the patients' safety.

"HB 4477 is contrary to the policy of the state to safeguard the well-being of
its citizenry particularly the youth from the harmful effects of dangerous
drugs,” the statement read.

https://www.lawphil.net/statutes/repacts/ra2002/ra_9165_2002.html
https://www.google.com.ph/search?q=prime+duty+of+the+government&rlz=1C1CHBD_enPH711PH7
11&oq=prime+duty&aqs=chrome.0.0j69i57j0l4.6250j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8
https://www.rappler.com/nation/146654-drug-use-survey-results-dangerous-drugs-board-
philippines-2015
https://www.rappler.com/nation/72172-ph-doctors-medical-marijuana-bill

Pot
Pot Doesn’t Cure Cancer and Stop
Saying It Does, FDA Says

Marijuana doesn’t cure cancer. It has not been shown to

somehow explode tumor cells or promote the growth of new brain
cells, the Food and Drug Administration said Wednesday.

The FDA warned four companies to stop making these unproven

claims and to stop selling cannabis-based hemp and marijuana
products that claim to treat cancer or any other medical condition.

“Substances that contain components of marijuana will be treated

like any other products that make unproven claims to shrink
cancer tumors,” FDA Commissioner Dr. Scott Gottlieb said in
a statement.
Prof. Bertha Madras of psychobiology at Mclean Hospital and
Harvard Medical School, (2016) Marijuana is not necessary to
legalize around the globe. It does not have the required criteria to
be fulfilled such as:
1. The drug chemistry must be known and reproducible.
2. There must be adequate safety studies.
3. There must be adequate and well-controlled studies proving
efficacy.

4. The drug must be accepted by well-qualified experts and

scientific evidence must be widely available.

To Serve and Protect the People as the Prime Duty of the

Government (Sec. 4, Art. II)
The prime duty of the state to serve and protect the people is
consistent with the basic democratic principle that “government
exists for the people and not the people for the government”.

https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/pot-doesn-t-cure-cancer-stop-
saying-it-does-fda-n816606
https://www.cnbc.com/id/36267223