DEMTOCO rejects claims of industry’s plan to impede Tobacco Control Bill

Aug 19, 2017 News

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Not only is the Tobacco Control Act in its current form more lenient than most, but according to

Representative of the Pan American Health Organisation/World Health Organisation [PAHO/WHO], Dr. William Adu-Krow, the Demerara Tobacco Company [DEMTOCO] should be grateful to the drafters of the Bill.
“I think DEMTOCO should give a ‘pat on the back’ to the lawmakers that they haven’t come up with more draconian laws. If this Bill says that you should smoke five metres [away] from areas where people congregate or public spaces, there are many countries that have 20 metres,” said Dr. Adu-Krow, as he considered some of the opposition forthcoming from the local tobacco company.
In fact, Dr. Adu-Krow told this publication earlier this week that information has reached the Washington D. C. headquarters of the PAHO/WHO of a purported plan by the tobacco industry to dissuade President David Granger from signing into law the Tobacco Control Bill.
“I wrote back to them and I said I don’t think so…” said Dr. Adu-Krow, who has since forwarded an email from the PAHO/WHO headquarters to this effect to the Senior Minister of Public Health, Ms. Volda Lawrence. He added too that “I am actually prepared to meet with Minister…and discuss it further with her, because I know she is also very passionate about it [the Tobacco Control Bill].”
Dr. Adu-Krow considered though that the tobacco industry has been known to engage in many delay tactics over the years.
“If they can delay the Bill becoming law for one day, they would do it. Even if they know that it will become law the very next day, they would try to delay it. They are very good at the delay tactic,” the PAHO/WHO Representative noted.
But the local tobacco Company is not taking the statements out of the local PAHO/WHO office

lightly.
In a blazing and very lengthy statement issued yesterday, the company said “DEMTOCO rejects the assertion by the PAHO/WHO Representative that as an Industry we would seek to deter President, Brigadier David Granger, from carrying out his constitutional responsibility of assenting to the recently passed Tobacco Control Bill of 2017.”
But even as the statement underscored that “We further reject the notion that as a company, we would seek to delay the passage of this legislation and instead point to our public pronouncements as proof of the contrary,” the company in its statement continued to clearly advocate for a delay.
It was outlined that the company had called on President Granger to place the Bill in the Joint Select Committee of Parliament in order for a more reasonable solution be arrived at before the gazetting of the Bill.
The company noted that although it understands and appreciates the need for a Government to enact laws it feels will protect all its citizens, “we do not believe that it is unreasonable to ensure that that same bill does not unfairly discriminate against its people and infringes upon their rights in doing so.
In this light, we wish to therefore categorically reject this effort to impugn the character of the industry, and to reaffirm our support for the passage of a Tobacco Control Bill that is fair, balanced, and non discriminatory. We do not believe that the bill in its present form is balanced and non discriminatory.”
The statement moreover went on to add, “We…restate our call for the President to ensure that these discriminatory elements are removed, and that the Bill be sent to a Select Committee where all stakeholders are finally consulted resulting in a better law being passed to regulate the tobacco industry. We understand the interests of PAHO, and their representative in attaining their objectives across the Caribbean, but we reject this false assertion, and urge them to allow the Guyanese people and democratic consultative processes, to institute a good piece of legislation that will be progressive, non- discriminatory and fair.”
Dr. Adu-Krow had however told this publication that while it is the view of PAHO/WHO, that “you should not go to bed with your enemy,” it also respects the fact that the level of consultations countries embrace is at the discretion of individual countries.
The PAHO/WHO Representative has however dubbed a government’s consultation with a tobacco company an exercise in futility, given the fact that the tobacco company’s intent is to offer a product known to kill at least half of its users and sicken many more, and the government’s intent is to reduce the resulting burden on the health care system. He moreover questioned, “How do you sit down to discuss something that conscientiously we can never agree on?”
Nevertheless, in its statement yesterday, the tobacco company said that it has expressed its support for the regulating of the tobacco industry through utterances of its management and official press statements. The company accepted too that government has obligations to regulate the industry, since it is party to the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC).
“Additionally, in expressing our support for the passage of the legislation, the company publicly wrote to both the present Health Minister, Mrs. Volda Lawrence, and the former, Hon. George Norton, offering assistance and support towards ensuring the development of a balanced piece of tobacco legislation,” the statement highlighted.
It was further noted that since the passage of the Bill, the company has made no secret of its disappointment in the fact that specific clauses in the legislation are harsh, and contain significant discriminatory measures that would negatively impact ordinary Guyanese.
“These concerning clauses, we believe go way beyond the stated intent of what a tobacco bill should be concerned with. Therefore, when the Private Sector Commission wrote the President expressing its own concerns with the form in which the Bill was passed, we publicly stated our support of this move, and in turn, wrote our own letter of appeal – outlining in clear terms the areas with which we were concerned,” it was noted.
Among the concerns of the tobacco company is that the definition of “Workplace” within the Bill, infringes on the rights of homeowners to smoke in their own homes if they have employed help, for example a gardener or housekeeper. As such it has appealed for an exception to private homes, when defining “workplace.”
Added to this, the company said that under the Section that proposes a Public Place Smoking Ban, the reference to no smoking in indoor places should not include private homes. Smoking cigarettes, it was noted too, is not an illegal act, and therefore should not be banned if a person chooses to do it in their own home. In fact the company injected “that was done in both Trinidad and Jamaica.”
It went on to point out that under the same section, the ban imposed on smoking in bars, restaurants and hotels, can accommodate both smokers and non-smokers alike, with a provision for the establishment of Outdoor designated smoking areas which it noted is done in other countries.
In fact it is the view of the company that “the ban on product display will see a serious rise in the illicit Tobacco trade by driving legal tobacco sales under the counter.
We point to our experience in neighbouring Suriname that saw an increase in illicit Tobacco trade from around 12 per cent to 70 percent. This ban will not only affect retailers’ ability to communicate product availability, but to a greater extent, affect Government’s ability to collect the taxes it requires to aid in nation building.
We proposed a fitting compromise to be an amendment that allows ‘the display of products at the point of sale only’ to allow customers to see what they are buying.”
It was further outlined by the company that the ban on packs of tens is also a fuel for the rise in illicit trade, since the majority of consumers not being able to afford a pack of 20, will move to purchase sticks or buy from illicit traders who will move to sell the tens, which the legal trade is being banned from selling.
As such it noted that “This ban therefore will serve no purpose in terms of the health agenda, but will only serve to create and give greater sustenance to the illicit trade business.”
Extending its argument, the company said that the ban on carrying trays with Tobacco products is significantly harsh, and will affect the livelihood and income of Hawkers, who have built homes, supported their families directly from the proceeds of selling a legal tobacco product.
“Whilst Government has noted that its motivation for this particular ban is to stop the sale of cigarettes to minors, we suggest that the Bill be amended to allow for carrying trays to be labeled with required health warnings and declarations against selling to minors. These can be provided by the Tobacco Company, through our retailers,” it was noted.
“…That articles avoiding relations with the industry contained in Sections 40-44 of the Bill, includes a list of restrictions and limitations on the interaction between any official, representative, or employee of any government institution responsible for tobacco control and any representative of the tobacco industry or tobacco products. It is our view that these clauses be removed. The Tobacco remains a key, legal stakeholder in the economic landscape of Guyana, and as such, should not be treated as a pariah, simply because there is a powerful lobby against our products,” the company underscored.
The company further expressed concern that under the same section, a person applying for a Government job is required to disclose their employment/relationship with the Tobacco industry, if it occurred within five years of their application.
“Not only is this not required by the FCTC, but it is also contrary to both local and international employment principles and regulations. It is in fact, discriminatory to penalize Guyanese legitimately employed or associated with a legal industry, for seeking a government job. This provision in its current form also affects persons employed in supermarkets, gas stations and any other place selling cigarettes or Tobacco products,” DEMTOCO underscored.

 

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