Lanao Sur town vice mayor nabbed at NAIA for yielding marijuana

A vice mayor from the southern Philippine province of Lanao del Sur was arrested at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport on Wednesday after authorities found sticks of marijuana in his pocket. Airport authorities said Wao town mayor Jeremy Guiab was arrested before boarding a Davao Ciy-bound Philippine Airlines flight at the NAIA Terminal 2 at about 4 a.m. Philippine National Police (PNP) spokesman Senior Superintendent Agrimero Cruz Jr. said the vice mayor was being frisked when authorities found a pack of cigarettes inside the right pocket of his pants. Inspection of the contents of the pack revealed 13 sticks of dried marijuana leaves. Guiab admitted that the cigarette pack was his, but said he did not intend to bring it and might have unintentionally picked it up before going to the airport. He also told authorities that he has been using the illegal drug for the last 15 years to minimize the itch triggered by his psoriasis. Psoriasis is a skin disease caused by rapid growth of skin cell. Guiab said it has been a long time since he stopped seeing his doctor and had just relied on marijuana to remedy the ill-effects of his sickness. Despite the reasons Guiab cited for possessing marijuana, the police still filed a complaint against him with the Pasay City Prosecutor's Office. — Mark Dalan Merueñas/LBG/KBK, GMANews.TV