I have smoked bhang for 21 years, suspect tells Eldoret court

A man charged with being in possession of 40 rolls of bhang told an Eldoret court that the drug helped him dig wells better.

Appearing before Chief Magistrate Charles Obulutsa last week, Victor Gachie pleaded guilty to being found with the bhang.

Police officers from Kapsoya Police Station received a tip that Mr Gachie was selling the drug. They tracked him to his house and found him with the 40 rolls in his jacket.

But Gachie denied selling the drug and told the court he only used it to make his job easier.

“I acknowledge that I was arrested with the drug but it is not in any way for commercial purposes. I smoke it myself because of the tedious nature of my work - digging wells,” he told the court.

He confessed that he had been smoking bhang for the last 21 years, during which he had never committed any offences linked to his drug habit.

Excellent work

“I do not abuse the drug and I don’t let it control me; rather I control it and it has helped me do excellent work. Sometimes you encounter rocks when you are digging wells, which require extra strength to break as you reach for the water table,” said Gachie.

Mr Obulutsa however wondered if 40 sticks of bhang could be for personal consumption only and asked Gachie how long it would take him to exhaust the stock.

“I would have smoked it in one and a half weeks; normally I smoke one after meals and before I begin digging. This helps me to control consumption and that is why I have been able to remain level-headed even after two decades of smoking,” Gachie responded.

Asked by the magistrate if he could prove that he excelled more at digging wells after smoking bhang, Gachie said he was ready to call a number of clients, including some public institutions, to testify of his “unmatched” skills.