Nigeria: Adebamowo - Matters Arising On Tobacco Control Legislation

Source from:  The Guardian 11/04/2014

The senate committee on health last week held the public hearing to repeal the tobacco control law of 1990 and to enact the National Tobacco control Bill 2012 to provide for the regulation, and control of production, manufacturing, sale, advertising, promotion and sponsorship of tobacco or tobacco products in Nigeria. As we know, tobacco control is about reducing or completely eradicating, the effects of tobacco smoke on the consumer. The question, however is that, has the war on tobacco smoking control failed or worked? it is pertinent that all proponents for and against tobacco control policies should sit down and accurately evaluate if the tobacco control policies or the drive for its implementation in several countries globally failed or succeed.

Different schools of thought have begun to emerge to look critically at the push for several policies and the appropriate strategies which may be deemed effective for those whom the policies wish to affect. World Health Organisation (WHO) states that 'the tobacco epidemic is one of the biggest public health threats the world has ever faced, killing nearly six million people a year.

At the public hearing, it was expressly declared that the bill is not meant to ban tobacco, but to set up a legal framework that will allow for effective control of the tobacco industry. According to the chairman Senate committee on health and the sponsor of the bill, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa representing Delta North in the upper chamber of the National Assembly, there is the need to control the distribution and supply chain stakeholders. "There is need to control the distribution and ensure that those in its supply chains are licensed in order to monitor their compliance to the regulatory framework. We are not out to ban tobacco or send people to the labour market. The industry operators only need to know that and comply with regulation, as it is not our intention to drive the operators away but put laws in place in order for them for them to operate in a responsible manner." He stated.

The public hearing was an avenue for diverse stakeholders to express their views about the bill and all contributors commended the bill. They called for the need to have a law that is enforceable and will not be counterproductive in implementation. The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), Nigerian Association of chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA) and Institute for Public Policy Analysis (IPPA) urged the parliamentarians to ensure the passage of a law that does not kill the legal industry, leaving behind negative consequences for the overall economy. For instance, NACCIMA in a document observed that when viewed against the background of the statistics from the data for beneficiaries of its Export Expansion Grant Scheme (EEG), the tobacco sector has contributed immensely to the economy. "Between 2006 and 2012, there was an accumulated inflow of foreign exchange worth N55.386 billion from the sector. The inflow also reflects an increase of 1,055.77 per cent from N1. 08billion in 2006 to N12.51billion in 2012. In the same period, the sector, according to the report, contributed N20.41billion in investment in capital assets and infrastructure development. There is also an increase of 89.08 per cent in 2012 to the tune of N2.96 billion as against N1.57billion in 2006. While in the area of employment generation, the sector recorded an increase of 11.64 per cent in 2012 with a total of 1,237 employees as against 1,108 employees in 2006," NACCIMA said.

At the hearing, the Intellectual Property Law Association of Nigeria (IPLAN) represented by its President, Prof. Bankole Sodipo urged the national Assembly to amend the bill in order to align with the Nigerian constitution and the international treaties to which Nigeria is a party. According to him, the bills form the view point of owners and practitioners dealing with issues concerning the intellectual property and wish to raise concern on some aspects of the bill: "Nigeria's obligations under the World Trade Organisation's Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Agreement (TRIPS), and the increasing role of foreign direct investment. It is clear that it is not the intention of the National Assembly to ban the production of tobacco. If it is not, some of the sections of the bill will damage the function of Trademarks as an instrument of distinguishing products for the tobacco products manufacturers."

Anti-tobacco lobbying groups argue that as a signatory to the World Health Organisation Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) of 2004, the country is expected to take practical steps to check the use of tobacco use. To them, only a further regulation as contained in the bill at the national assembly would do. Presenting its organisation's memorandum, the director of Environmental Rights Action and Friends of the Earth (ERA), Akinbode Oluwafemi commended the Senate for championing the course of regulating the tobacco industry since 2003; he noted that his organisation is calling for the regulation of the contents of tobacco products as well as the packaging and labelling of tobacco products in the country. According to him, they are also advocating the rights of non-smokers since tobacco is the only commodity a consumer consumes and it affects a non-consumer of the product. "We are not insensitive. We also know that smokers also have a right to smoke but we on the other side believe that inasmuch as smokers have their own right, non-smokers' right should also be protected," he stated. Enditem