NGO urges media to create awareness on Act
A non-governmental organization (NGO), the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) has said that if measures are not urgently put in place to halt the rate of tobacco smoking, about eight million people are estimated to be at risk of loosing their lives by the year 2030.

CISLAC, therefore called on the media to as a matter of national importance create awareness on the Act controlling the use of tobacco product in the country, adding that despite the proven negative impact of tobacco product on users, most Nigerians are not aware of the existence of the Act meant to control the usage.

Speaking at a one day workshop for the media towards supporting effective tobacco control in Nigeria with support from African Capacity Building Foundation (ACBF) in Abuja, the Senior Programme Officer, CISLAC, Okeke Anya, called on the media to create awareness for the Act.

The Act, assented to by former President Goodluck Jonathan on May 26, 2015, is an offshoot of the World Health Organisation Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO-FCTC).

According to him, about 178 countries have signed on to the convention while some countries need to domesticate it before becoming a law in their countries just as some others need not to.

Speaking further on the adverse effect of tobacco on both the smoker and the public, Anya said about six million people die yearly around the world as a result of tobacco effect.