The President of the West African College of Physicians, Dr. Roger Makanjuola, has raised alarm over the possible health hazard posed by the influx of tobacco companies into the sub-region.

Makanjuola spoke at the 32nd Annual General and Scientific Conference of the West African College of Physicians yesterday in Abuja.

He said the multinational companies faced with declining sales in the industrialised nations,have flooded West African markets with cheap cigarettes.

This, he held, has killed the local tobacco industry and its associated agricultural benefits.

"They came into our countries, bought up the farmlands and built cigarette factories from which they are now flooding the market with their lethal products.

"We must combat this threat if we are to avoid the major health disasters that have been recorded in the industrialised nations as a result of tobacco smoking," he said.

He identified the dangers of cigarette smoking as lung cancer, chronic respiratory diseases, stroke, heart attacks and a multiplicity of other problems.(NAN)