Dear Editor, The landowners wish to correct the statements in Tuesday’s paper regarding the Ngatangiia Matavera Sports Club (Court application to determine the future of Nukupure Park, Cook Islands News, February 14). This land has not been “gifted” to anyone. It remains the landowners’ land, and the landowners are the ones who get to decide what happens to our land.

The “future of the Sports Club” is not up in the air as Tuesday’s article implies.

The application before the court is to partition the land between the landowners. A partition will not affect the Sports Club, only determine who the owners of that land are.

Despite disagreements between landowners and the Sports Club in the past, the landowners have never objected to the Sports Club being on our land nor have we ever tried to have the Sports Club removed.

Disagreements in the past have been about who has the right to make decisions about the land that the Sports Club occupies, not its occupation itself.

It is disappointing that some people might try to scare landowners or try to influence their views on this court application by implying that the future of the Sports Club is at stake.

If the landowners decide we wish to partition this land, that is our decision to make. No one else gets to decide for us.

Regards,

Mataatua McNair

Medicinal cannabis

This is regarding the “Visitors escape cannabis conviction” article on February 14. There are lots of holes in this fabrication of lies from these people bringing drugs into Rarotonga, the biggest and glaringly obvious one is, prescribed products containing THC for medical use, is taken as a liquid, tablet or dried leaf is inhaled through a vaporiser, smoking it is not considered safe medically.

Police prosecutors should be looking closely at the prescription’s and terms of use. Everyone chomping at the bit, to bring in “medicinal cannabis” are really just wanting it for recreational use, and are just using “medicinal” as an excuse.

If it’s going to be okayed for medicinal use, institute strict rules especially for those containing THC, like most sensible nations have! So it can only be used through a vaporiser. This makes it difficult, and still illegal to take to town or party’s and share with friends.

Meitaki Ma’ata

Concerned citizen

Duncan Lewis