"Constitute National Tobacco Control Committee"- CISLAC tells Health Minister.

Civil Society Legislative Advocacy centre (CISLAC) Friday called on the Minister of Health, Mr Isaac Adewole to constitute the National Tobacco Control Committee saddled with the responsibility of making regulations to Govern the implementation of the Act as provided for amongst other responsibilities of the committee.

The Executive Director, CISLAC, Auwal Ibrahim Musa made this call at a press briefing Towards Supporting Effective Tobacco Control in Nigeria, in Abuja.

Auwal Ibrahim Musa who was represented by the senior programme officer CISLAC, Mr Okeke Anya said Globally, tobacco consumption remains the leading cause of preventable deaths.

He noted that Statistics by the WHO reveal that over six million people die annually from tobacco consumption, adding that progression in this order will by the year 2030 amount to over eight million deaths annually with 80% of these death occurring in developing countries.

Auwal Ibrahim said that Nigerian's Global Adult Tobacco survey (GATS) release on july 11 2013 also reveal that 10.0% of men, 1.1% of women, and 5.6% overall 4.5 million Nigeria adults currently use tobacco product.

"Sadly, with the above statistics, the Act still has a number of shortcoming that include the disturbing recourse of the Federal Ministry of Health to the National Assembly to issue regulations and also the allowing of designated smoking Areas(DSAs) in some indoor places and workplaces", he said.

He recalled that the Federal Government of Nigeria in May 2015 signed into an Act the National Tobacco Control Act 2015.

Auwal Ibrahim said "the Act ushered in a legislative basis and legal framework for regulating all actors involved in the production,sale,consumption and otherwise of tobacco products in the country and is the result of a long and tedious journey that commenced almost a decade age with Tobacco control Advocates cutting across civil society,health practitioners,regulatory agencies and the citizenry at large joining in the calls for Nigeria to have in place a strict and enforceable tobacco legislative".

He noted that Nigeria in 2004 signed,and in 2005 ratified the World health Organization Framework on Tobacco Control (WHO-FCTC).

"The country had very weak and poorly implemented tobacco control policies such as the Tobacco Smoking(Control) Act 2004 (formerly Tobacco Smoking Control) decree 20 of 1990, the code of Advertising practice (APCON),1993, he said".

"Curious and interesting dynamics that accompanied the passage of the bill and assent into an Act by the Federal Government, the Tobacco Industry remains adamant to the health implications of tobacco use and the millions of Nigeria's that are at risk from consuming tobacco". He added