26 January 2008
editorial
Lagos — The other day, the federal government turned down the application of Japan Tobacco to set up a multi-million dollar cigarette manufacturing plant in Osun State.
Hailed by the anti-smoking public, the action would prove to be hasty and hypocritical unless more pragmatic steps are taken to attack what has for long been globally accepted as a dangerous habit.
Interestingly, antagonists of the government's decision parade noteworthy arguments. They point to the fact that the act of smoking -done privately, especially - is yet to be declared illegal by any statute; that there are indeed other tobacco firms, like the $150 million British American Tobacco (BAT) in Ibadan, operating in the country now; that smoking is, after all, a matter of personal choice and that the sizable economic gains that would accrue to the government and citizenry by way of taxes and employment should not be ignored. Remarkably; some of the tobacco firms now actively engage in noble causes like making financial and material contributions to the society. The critics have also drawn a parallel with breweries which thrive even under an adverse business atmosphere as they are sustained by a large, robust drinking market. Those in the pro-tobacco production camp have argued that since alcohol that also has negative consumer and third-party effects still enjoys government patronage, there is no reason to fervently kick at cigarette manufacturers the way bodies like the Coalition Against Tobacco (CAT) - a new NGO / Government collaboration- do.
However, credible statistics show that failure to challenge the onslaught of this practice that has no proven benefit to man can only result in more doom. A warning by the World Health Organisation (WHO) validates this stance. As it puts it," If we do not act decisively today, a hundred years from now, our children and their (the estimated 10 million people now on death list, courtesy tobacco - related infirmities) grandchildren will look back and seriously question how a people claiming to be committed to public health and social justice allowed the tobacco epidemic to unfold unchecked."
That admonition is, no doubt, timely. The Federal Ministry of Health revealed not long ago that the rate of smoking among Nigerian youths which was 4.4 per cent in 1994 had jumped to 18.1 per cent in 2001. Even more worrisome is the fact that most of those who have embraced the habit are ignorant of its shocking details: Cigarette contains 2000 chemicals, including tar and nicotine. Forty of them cause caucer. Believed to be the most addictive substance on earth, nicotine - added only to create a lifelong habit-reaches the brain within 11 seconds of inhalation.
Researchers have also since proved the belief that cigarettes help in dealing with stress and overweight to be fallacious; that the notion is only a behavioural reaction to the products. Whatever the motivation, the effects of smoking are truly damning. Responsible for at least 25 diseases in man, tobacco has continued to kill countless people worldwide especially in developing countries like Nigeria , with a soaring incidence of addiction. Its cost to the country has been put conservatively at N12 billion annually. Such debilitating blows on the nation's human resources and environment must not be allowed to go on. Government's zeal in facing up to the costly habit is, therefore, understandable. It is reassuring to watch it give visible expression to the fight against smoking. But, at the same time, it should not unwittingly endorse the criticism that by rejecting the establishment of the tobacco plant in the country, it has thrown away a major investment opportunity. It can stay on course by thoroughly implementing the spirit of WHO's Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) which it ratified in 2005. The Convention targets critical aspects of the trade and consumption of tobacco products like their distribution, sale and labelling.
Like what obtains in advanced countries, the marketing of cigarettes should be made more difficult through the imposition of heavy tarrifs and strict censorship of related advertisements. No beneficial qualities should be openly attributed to commodities that have constantly put humanity at mostrous risks. The youths are particularly vulnerable in this regard. Also, the law that prohibits public smoking should be reinforced and where non exists currently, it should be enacted. In suing some tobacco companies over the diseases they assist in spreading, the government seems set to go all the way. And as shown in nations where people are conscious of their rights, litigation can actually clip the wings of the cigarette producers. The government should take a clue from there and create the environment for the people to get more involved in the crusade to contain the devastating effects of tobacco.
Until these steps are vigorously pursued, government's decision on the proposed tobacco manufacturing site will be perceived as a half-hearted, ill-thought exercise and even portray it as directionless in this onerous fight against smoking.
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