KARACHI, May 30: Health professionals belonging to various medical institutions criticized the government on Friday for its failure to take effective measures towards tobacco control.
They demanded that the “Prohibition of Smoking and Protection of Non-Smoker Ordinance 2002” be strictly enforced in order to protect the public from tobacco, the single largest preventable cause of death in Pakistan.
Speaking on the occasion, Dr Nadeem Rizvi of the Pakistan Chest Society said that despite the announcement made by the federal health ministry four weeks ago about the implementation of the said ordinance from May 31, no steps for the same had been taken so far.
This showed that the government was not serious about taking measures to control tobacco use in the country. Perhaps the authorities were worried over the loss of revenue that it earned from the tobacco industry, said a handout.
Prof Javaid A. Khan of the Aga Khan University said that according to a research study conducted last year by his university, 40 per cent men and 8 per cent women consumed tobacco on a regular basis. He regretted that the tobacco companies had been given a free hand to promote a powerful addictive substance to the youth of the country.
As a result of their aggressive marketing campaign an estimated 1,500 children were taking up smoking everyday in the country. Lung cancer was the number one cause of cancer death in Pakistani males and over 90 per cent of such cases were caused directly because of the use of tobacco.
He added that tobacco use in the form of “gutka” and “pan masaala” was on the increase in Pakistan, resulting in a higher incidence of head, neck and mouth cancers.
Prof Siraj-ud-daula of the Cancer Society said tobacco was responsible for almost 50 per cent of all cancer cases in the country, yet smoking was advertised on PTV as something pleasurable, cool and glamorous. He demanded that a comprehensive ban be imposed on all forms of tobacco advertising as well as on sponsorship of sports and other entertainment events by the tobacco industry.
“When Bangladesh and India can ban tobacco advertising on their TV channels, why can’t PTV do the same? Is revenue from the tobacco ads more important than human lives,” he questioned.
Dr Sajid Ali also spoke on the occasion, according to a press release of the Pakistan Chest Society.
