The Minister of Commerce Trade and industry Chipoka Mulenga says the “Tobacco Control Bill” supports the withdrawing of support from the tobacco industry and providing maximum limitations on the industry which he said would completely kill the tobacco industry.
Speaking on Hot seat program on Hot FM, the Minister says whenever you want to get rid of anything there is need to find the replacement and it is impossible for now to get rid of the tobacco industry.
Recently, the “Tobacco Control Bill “ went in the second internal legislation but due to the divided government, the four cabinet ministers namely Situmbeko Musokotwane, Chipoka Mulenga, Reuben Mtolo Phiri and Collins Nzovu declined to support the bill.
This means that hopes to have the bill enacted into law fades despite assurance by the Minister of Health Sylvia Masebo that government is committed to enact the bill into law.
He says the Bill is not about limiting the sale of cigarettes but curtailing with certain facilities where the Ministry of finance and Commerce are supporting.
“if you say that tobacco is killing people in the country then you are going to say that remove the knives in the kitchen because people kill each other using knives or remove the cars on roads because people are dying” said Chipoka.
He has stressed that the public should not only get the negative side of tobacco but look at the benefits of it such as job creation, forex generation, farming production among others.
Mr. Chipoka has called on Tobacco control campaigners to invest sensitization and advocate for behavioral and lifestyle change.
Despite, the Minister claimed that he has extensively read the bill and its current state the bill cannot be enacted into law, in countries where the bill has been enacted they are still growing tobacco contrary to what the minister is claiming that the bill will kill the industry.
According to both 2020 and 2021 Tobacco Industry Inference Index conducted by the Tobacco Free Association of Zambia (TOFAZA), industry interference in tobacco law formulation stood high at 78 percent.
Tobacco control campaigners have always argued in favor of public health over profit through cigarette trade.
They contend that there is no amount of money which can equate a single life lost as a result of tobacco consumption.
Therefore, any further delay in the enactment of the Tobacco Control Bill is seen as an affront to promoting public health and a huge compromise by government on saving lives.
Tobacco Control Consortium of Zambia is saddened that the Ministry of Commerce Trade And Industry Chipoka Mulenga has supported the withdrawal of the tobacco control bill from parliament.
The Minister explained that he has extensively read the bill and it supports the withdrawing of support from the tobacco industry and providing maximum limitations on the industry thereby killing the tobacco industry.
But TCCZ Chairperson Albert Phiri says in countries where the bill has been enacted into law the tobacco industry is still thriving and questioned the minister as to why is seemingly bent on having the bill back to parliament.
He has encouraged the Minister to read what has been presented on the benefits of passing the tobacco.
Mr. Phiri says the bill is not at variant with the production of tobacco stating that the benefit of passing the bill far outweighs the current initial.