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Nigeria: 'No Exemption From Anti-Smoking Law'
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This Day (Lagos)
16 May 2008
Posted to the web 16 May 2008
Damilola Oyedele
Abuja
With Abuja, the Nigerian capital set to join New York, London, Nairobi and several capital cities which have prohibited public smoking , the Federal Capital Territory Administration has said that no resident of the territory, be it government official or other highly placed individual would be exempted from the Tobacco Control Act of 1990, which would take effect from June 1, 2008.
Disclosing this at a media briefing in Abuja, Chairman, Committee on the Ban of Smoking in Public Places, Mrs Felicita Olajide said questions had been raised as to the possibility of implementing the anti smoking Act in places like the National Assembly and the Presidential Villa. She however maintained that the fine or penalty for smoking in public would apply to all members of the society.
"Dont forget that President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua is the biggest advocate of the rule of law, therefore he is not above it. But don't forget that the ban is on smoking in public," she emphasized.
Smoking, she agreed, is the right of the smoker, but the smoker infringes on the right of the non-smoker by exposing him to second hand smoke, she said.
"We are all aware of the great dangers that cigarettes pose to the lives of our people especially children who are susceptible to the hazards of smoking due to their tender lungs," she affirmed.
The deputy Director of the FCT Legal Secretariat, Abdullahi Kuyama said it is not the monetary fine of N200 that matters but the fact that the act is criminal and the offender has been convicted.
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The Anti Smoking Bill which is currently before the National Assembly is seeking to expand the places where smoking is prohibited, he said, disclosing that a task force comprising of the Police, National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Abuja En-vironmental Protection Agency (AEPB) and other relevant agencies is being set up to implement the Act as from June 1, 2008.
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