Marijuana plants uprooted in Compostela Valley

www.philstar.com ^ | 8.1.03 | John Unson

[freepatriot32]

COTABATO CITY PHILIPPINES— Lawmen uprooted thousands of full grown marijuana plants in Central Mindanao yesterday, the second haul in four days.

South Cotabato’s provincial police discovered the marijuana farm in Barangay Katol, a hinterland town in Tiboli, South Cotabato, with the help of local officials and religious leaders.

The alleged owner of the prohibited plants, a certain Sinulim Gawad, eluded arrest after sensing that policemen, backed by civilian volunteers, have started surrounding his farm.

The uprooting of marijuana plants in Tiboli came less than a week after operatives of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) police burned some P20 million worth of marijuana in a three-hectare farm in Matanog, Maguindanao.

Chief Superintendent Acmad Omar, director of the ARMM police, said the marijuana plants were neatly planted in between rows of other crops in a secluded village in Matanog, not far from a hostile stretch of the Secretary Narciso Ramos Highway.

According to Omar, the propagator of the marijuana plants, whom barangay officials identified as Taha Gabuk, managed to escape just as members of the ARMM police were approaching the farm.

"The information that a marijuana farm exists in that barangay was first relayed to our intelligence units by religious leaders there. The raid was immediately carried out after a week-long surveillance and verification," Omar said.

The uprooted marijuana plants, the biggest haul by the ARMM police this year, were burned in the town proper of Matanog in the presence of local officials.

[freepatriot32]

[MrLeRoy]

A drop in the bucket, I imagine. The War On Some Drugs is a waste of time, money, and lives.

[thoughtomator]

The cannibis plant is among the hardiest plants known to man. It is capable of growing on over 2/3 of the world's land surface.

Even without people purposely planting this stuff everywhere, there is no possible hope of eradicating it.

This war on plants is the hubris of Man attempting to enshrine his judgement above that of God. It is destined to fail - no man can place his opinion over the judgement of God.

[Lee Heggy]

"The uprooted marijuana plants...were burned in the town proper of Matanog in the presence of local officials."

Wanna bet they were downwind?

[WoofDog123]

"A drop in the bucket, I imagine. The War On Some Drugs is a waste of time, money, and lives."

Sometimes I read lines like this and had to perform a reality check...it is a stupid plant, it is not a product made in a lab, made with any of various noxious toxic additivies, and it is not demonstrably more harmful to health than tobacco or alcohol, nor more mind-altering than alcohol, though in a differnt way.

Big brother is insane. This is stupid. I can see real objections to designer drugs, i.e. crack, x, others....but this stuff should be legal. It is a trivial matter compared to the big ones, that cause people to spend every dime they have, rob everyone they know, prostitute to anyone with a minimum of drug or money, etc.

Who ever went broke from a simple marijuana habit? If it was legal, it would be as cheap as a pack of cigs. It would be treated with respect to driving, workplace, similarly to alcohol.

I suppose there are some freepers who would justify the 18th amendment as War of Alcohol if it were still in force as well. Tear down the doors, search the frig, look for illegal hops or malted barley, etc.

[MrLeRoy]

the big ones, that cause people to spend every dime they have, rob everyone they know, prostitute to anyone with a minimum of drug or money, etc.

The high price of drugs is due to the War On (Some) Drugs.

I suppose there are some freepers who would justify the 18th amendment as War of Alcohol if it were still in force as well.

"As well"? There was never an amendment authorizing the War On Some Drugs.

[Libertarianize the GOP]

http://www.freerepublic.com/perl/bump-list

[dead]

Sinulim Gawad, eluded arrest after sensing that policemen, backed by civilian volunteers, have started surrounding his farm.

Cool! His pot gave him mystical spidey-sense!

[MrLeRoy]

"My sinse-sense is tingling!"

[A CA Guy]

Just say "NO"!

[Sparta]

I'm sure the Philipino authorties in Mindanao (where there's an Islamic uprising in progress) had nothing better to do than destroy some pot plants. You know the threat of Islamic terrorism is not as much as a bunch of people growing that demon weed. (/sarcasm)