Popcaan Stirs Up Weed Controversy In Ghana, Responds To Kwaw Kese Callout
Jamaican dancehall artiste Popcaan may have just inadvertently spurred on the movement in Ghana to have marijuana legalized.
Calls increased from Ghanaians to have the herb legalized after Popcaan (Andre Sutherland) was seen in a video smoking what appears to be marijuana in the full view of Ghanaian police who were escorting him in the West African country.
Kwaw Kese, a Ghanaian Hiplife artist, started the uproar when he reposted the video and asked his fans to discuss why Popcaan was allowed to smoke weed in public without any action being taken against him. Kwaw was jailed in 2015 for doing the same thing after performing at a public show and was enraged by the difference in treatment that he received from the authorities.
In the video, the Weed Is My Best Friend singer is seen coming out the top of a limousine smoking what looks like weed to roaring chants from a crowd. According to Kese this happened with a Ghana Police escort. Kese said that it was hypocritical that no charges were brought against Popcaan.
Kwaw Kese reposted this angry caption to Instagram: “Only in Ghana foreigners Can f#@k up like this. When @kwawkese smoked in public he was arrested. So this means our Law set only to control on the citizens but foreigners are free To Go ..the most painful part is Ghana 🇬🇭 👮🏻♀️ 👮 police . None of them was able to speak the truth out because of the small coins which will be given out .. Ooh Ghana 🇬🇭 ”
Kwaw Kese, whose real name is Emmanuel Kofi Botchwey, is also called Abodam which is Ghanaian for craziness. His hit album Abodam, which was released in 2007, won five awards at the 2008 edition of the Ghana Music Awards. Hiplife is a Ghanaian musical style that fuses Ghanaian culture and hip hop.
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Popcaan in true diplomatic form replied to Kese in the comments saying: “i’m not a foreigner bro we all came from africa don’t be mad bro let’s try to organize a meeting with the government to legalize weed it’s simple #unruly”.
In reply, Kese posted a video in which he said he was not at all mad at Popcaan and that he’s a big fan. “I am mad at our system. The Ghana System that sees people who smoke marijuana as criminals and sends them to prison,” he said.
He said he wants the Ghanaian government to decriminalize the use of marijuana, and believes that Ghanaians deserve the same treatment that the Jamaican entertainer received from his armed police escorts.
Some reports indicate that Kese wants to take Popcaan up on his offer and meet with the President Nana Akufo-Addo to discuss the way forward for marijuana use in Ghana.
Talks of weed legalization have been a hot topic in Ghana for a while now. Weed is still illegal in the country without a license from the Minster of Health. A UN Report in 2015 revealed that the country was number three in the global ranking of consumers of marijuana and number one in Africa.
Interest and civil society groups have urged the government to reconsider the laws that criminalize marijuana usage. But, supporters of the laws, including the country’s Mental Health Authority maintain that the banned substance is a health hazard.
Weed is still technically illegal in Jamaica but in 2015, the government reformed the laws to decriminalize possession of small amounts and allow citizens to cultivate limited numbers of the Marijuana plant.
Popcaan arrived in Ghana to a glorious welcome on New Year’s Eve for the ‘Year of Return’ with his Unruly entourage. Two days into the trip, the Vanquish singer revealed that he had acquired a house in the country – giving fans a peak with a thread of short videos.
He soaked up Ghanian culture before making an emotional visit to the Cape Coast Castle to honor his ancestors who suffered the Transatlantic Slave Trade.
What an exciting way to start 2020!