Alaska legalises private use of marijuana

Marijuana has become legal in Alaska, a northern state in the United States (US), effective from Tuesday, February 24, 2015, 

Alaska becomes only the third US state to end prohibition of marijuana, courtesy of a November 2014 vote where 53 percent of state voters accented to its legality.

Earlier, Oregon and Washington DC took similar votes to join Washington State and Colorado as states where the consumption of Marijuana is legal.

Any 21-year-old in Alaska is now legally allowed to consume “weed” as it is otherwise called in their homes, with permission to grow up to six plants of the marijuana.

However, consuming weed in public remains illegal, and a fine of $100 (N20,000) is the penalty for lighting up marijuana in public space.

In preaching proper use of weed, legalisation-advocacy group, the Marijuana Policy Project, will be launching adverts urging adults to “consume responsibly”, understanding that “with great marijuana laws comes great responsibility”.

Oregon is prepared to join Alaska in July, as a US state where use of Marijuana would be legal.

Marijuana remains illegal under federal law, but states are allowed to proceed with the legalisation due to the Department of Justice stance on the issue.

According to a recent study, as much as $8m (N1.6 billion) could be made from marijuana taxes by approving states in the first year of sales, with more than $20 million (N4 billion) projected by 2020.

Marijuana has many health benefits among which are its use in treating and preventing glaucoma, protecting the brain damage after stroke, helping to halt the spread of cancer among others.