By Rachael Najjuma
5th May 2023
The constitutional court has today nullified the Narcotic Drug and Psychotropic Substances (control) Act 2015 which came into force in 2016.
A group of growers under their body Wakiso Miraa Growers and Dealers Association petitioned this court challenging the act raising different grounds.
In their petition, the petitioners through their lawyer Isaac Ssemakadde contended that it was unfair for government to prohibit Khat and subjecting the growers to dissuasive criminal and non criminal sanctions which are disproportionate to the provable harm, if any, posed by the leafy green flowering shrub that has previously been a competitive source of livelihood for millions of Ugandans.
They further argued that although the plant contained substances like cathinone and cathine which in isolation are classified as controlled substances under domestic and international law, Khat itself wasn’t considered to be an illicit substance by the global authority on public health problems associated with drug consumption.
Today while nullifying the Act, constitutional judges led by justice Monica Mugenyi noted that while the parliament was passing this Act there was no quorum hence the nullification.
Stanley Okecho who held a brief for Counsel Isaac Ssemakadde welcomed the ruling plus the growers who appeared in numbers on Friday highlighting that now the Khat growers are free to do business with their product.
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