Nigeria: Group Calls for Collaboration to Control Tobacco Smoking

Source from:  This Day  08/23/2013

The Environmental Rights Action (ERA) and the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) has called for active collaboration between journalists and the civil rights groups for the control of tobacco smoking in the country. The call was made at a recent roundtable discussion with journalists in Lagos.

ERA Director of Corporate Accountability, Mr. Akinbode Oluwafemi, informed journalists that between 5 to 6million Nigerians smoke, and 3million people in the country are currently on death row, as a result of tobacco-related diseases now common in Nigeria. Oluwafemi said tobacco statistics is taken per number of persons it kills.

While inviting journalists to partner with civil rights groups to ensure the rate of smoking in Nigeria drops and the tobacco control bill is given assent to by the president, Oluwafemi said, " we are using this forum to solicit your support in our bid to reduce tobacco-related deaths in our society as experts and professionals on health matters and we are glad to engage you in the business of making our society free of tobacco ills."

Executive Director of the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre(CISLAC), Mr. Auwal Ibrahim Musa(Rafsanjani), said his group recognised the importance of good legislation to assuage the effects of smoking in a society like Nigeria.

He lamented how Nigerians smoke uncontrollably, in disregard for poor health facilities in the country and queried government's unresponsive attitude to making anti-tobacco law a reality.

Condemning the nefarious activities of the tobacco companies, Hilda Ochefu of Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, blamed tobacco companies for many untimely deaths in the society saying tobacco business is about profit over loss. She explained that the tobacco manufacturers have unrestrained powers, even more than oil companies, saying, that's why they flout orders and get away with it. She charged the government to expedite action on the passage of the tobacco control bill into law.

In his own speech at the event,representative of the Nigeria Tobacco Control Alliance(NTCA), Mr. Gbenga Adejuwon, bemoaned the way the tobacco control bill had been treated with levity, which he said promotes the unhealthy lifestyle adopted in most advanced countries. Enditem