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EDITORIAL: WHO on passive smoking 

The warning by the World Health Organisation (WHO) that passive smoking constitutes a global threat, is revealing and must be checked.

The UN agency had in its second major report on the “tobacco epidemic” released last week, said second-hand or passive smoking killed nearly 600,000 people each year. WHO, which also warned that tobacco is still the leading preventable cause of death, killing five million people every year, said more and more people were likely to suffer from the harmful effects of passive smoking. . . .

For Nigeria, which is a signatory to the WHO FCTC, the challenge posed by passive smoking is by no means less daunting. Although there are no available data on passive smoking, a report by an Expert Committee on Non-communicable diseases in 1988 certified that 4.5 million Nigerians were smokers. . . .

It is pertinent to add that it was during Olikoye’s tenure as Health Minister under the Ibrahim Babangida regime, that a law against smoking in public places was enacted. Unfortunately, the law all but exists in name as a report by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) had it that over 60 per cent of Nigerian undergraduates smoked. Given the very lax nature of the law on smoking and the general lack of awareness about passive smoking in the country and its consequences, it is not unlikely that the general population are at risk. . . .

There is no gainsaying that smoking places a huge burden on health care provisions all around the world. Governments should, therefore, embark on aggressive public enlightenment campaigns to sensitise Nigerians on the effects of passive smoking, and indeed, smoking in general. No effort should be spared to ensure that Nigerians stay healthy.

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