12/06/2025
Sen. Robin Padilla isn’t just the most-voted senator in the Philippines—he might be the only one who understands the cultural pulse of the country without needing a focus group.
While most traditional politicians stick to safe scripts, Padilla continues to champion issues that strike directly at the intersection of health, poverty, and modernization. His latest push? Legalizing medical ma*****na.
This isn’t a stunt. It’s consistent with the kind of politics that has made him a favorite of ordinary Filipinos. He speaks in straight lines, backs policies that break away from elitist thinking, and carries the rare credibility of someone who lived a real life before entering the marble halls of the Senate.
And in this case, science is on his side. So is the rest of the world.
Across continents, countries are shifting their cannabis policies, not out of rebellion, but out of reason. Nations like Thailand, Germany, Canada, and the Netherlands, have legalized medical and recreational cannabis with proven benefits to both public health and the economy.
In Thailand, where medical ma*****na became legal in 2018 and cannabis was decriminalized in 2022, the industry generated billions of baht in its first year.
In Germany, the regulated cannabis market is projected to inject over €4 billion annually into the economy. These aren’t stoner fantasies. They are policy wins rooted in science, economics, and compassion.
In fact, according to a 2023 nationwide survey, 63% of Filipinos support legalizing ma*****na for medical use. Padilla sees it not as a cultural wedge issue, but as a health access issue and he’s not alone.
A growing number of lawmakers and public health advocates are calling for the Philippines to follow in these countries footsteps on launching highly regulated medical cannabis programs with tangible results, as studies have shown that it is safer than alcohol.
It doesn’t lead to fatal overdoses, it’s less addictive, and it has known medical benefits. It’s been shown to help patients manage epilepsy, cancer-related nausea, chronic pain, anxiety, PTSD, and more. That’s why over 50 countries legalized cannabis for medical use.
Meanwhile, in our country, cannabis-derived medication—still imported—can cost families upwards of ₱1.6 million a year. For sick Filipinos, that’s not a health policy, that’s a punishment.
Most of the educated world now understands what science has long shown: ma*****na is not the threat it was made out to be. What is dangerous is a healthcare system that withholds viable treatment options from people who need them most.
This is about making sure that ordinary people aren’t left to suffer because of outdated laws.
Legalizing ma*****na in the Philippines may still sound controversial in political circles, but among the working class, the chronically ill, and families left behind by high-cost medicine, it’s not radical—it’s rational.
Robin Padilla knows this is overdue, and more importantly, he’s one of the few willing to act on it.
