Police Minister Bheki Cele, 17 August 2018, Unisa Campus, Pretoria. Picture: Jacques Nelles
Police Minister Bheki Cele told University of Zululand students on Tuesday afternoon that marijuana is a gateway drug which increases the probability of its users taking other drugs such as mandrax and cocaine, News24 reports.
The minister’s visit to the institution came after chaos erupted at the university on Sunday afternoon after a student allegedly stabbed his dormitory roommate to death over a silly argument.
Police were reportedly called to the scene to quell the student’s violent reaction to the alleged murder and the police were forced to call in reinforcements before calm could be restored and the corpse removed from one of the campus’ student residences.
Cele’s comments were reportedly in reaction to the Constitutional Court ruling on Tuesday decriminalising both the use and cultivation of cannabis in private.
Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo, who handed down the court’s unanimous decision, said in the interim while parliament adapts the law within 24 months, individuals are allowed to smoke privately in their own home.
The police minister was quoted as saying that had Zondo sought his opinion on the matter he would have been opposed to decriminalising the private use of dagga.
Handing down the ruling, the deputy chief justice stressed that both selling the substance and use of it by minors is still illegal.
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