BY JOHN HOUANIHAU
The Bills and Legislation Committee (BLC) inquiry into the Dangerous Drugs (Amendment) Bill 2025 has been postponed for Friday, February 20.
The inquiry was supposed to take place yesterday, Tuesday, 17 February, at the Parliament Conference Room II.
The BLC Secretariat confirmed yesterday morning that the sponsoring Ministry of Health and Medical Services (MHMS) requested rescheduling of the inquiry.
The Chairman of the Bills and Legislation Committee, John Maneniaru, has approved the request, BLC said in a statement yesterday.
The Dangerous Drugs (Amendment) Bill 2025 seeks to amend the Dangerous Drugs Act (Cap. 98) by revising Section 39 to increase the maximum penalty for offences where no specific penalty is prescribed under the Act.
The overview of the Bill includes;
-Clause 1 – Specifies the short title of the Act
-Clause 2 – Provides for the commencement of the Act on a date appointed by the Minister through a notice published in the Gazette
-Clause 3 – States that the Bill amends the Dangerous Drugs Act (Cap. 98), referred to as the Principal Act
– Clause 4 – Amends Section 39 of the Principal Act to provide that where a person is convicted of an offence under the Act for which no penalty is specified, the offender is liable to a fine not exceeding 15,000,000 penalty units, or to imprisonment for life, or to both. This amendment effectively increases the penalty under Section 39(2)(a).
BLC, however, said that the hearing schedule is subject to change should the need arise.
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