NTCA Demands Enforcement Of Ban On Tobacco Advertising

Nigeria Tobacco Control Alliance (NTCA) has called on relevant authorities to enforce the ban on tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship in Nigeria.

NTCA programme officer, Chibuike Nwokorie, made the call last Wednesday at a press briefing on violation of the ban on Tobacco Advertising, Promotion and Sponsorship (TAPS) in Abuja.

Nigeria is a signatory to the World Health Organisation (WHO) Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO-FCTC), adding that Nigeria ratified this treaty in 2005, and to domesticate this treaty, the National Tobacco Control Act was enacted in 2015. “Four years later, in December 2019, the Regulations that give teeth to the Act were approved.”

Nwokorie noted that advertising is an effective tool that is being used by the tobacco industry to increase product sales, market share and profits, saying that the tobacco industry knows this too well and spends billions of dollars on advertising their products.

He expressed worry that films, videos, and many digital platforms have continued to escape the scrutiny of the government. This he said has given the tobacco Industry a leeway to perpetuate tobacco advertising, promotion, and sponsorship in movies, music videos and lyrics, while strategically placing their products on several digital media platforms.

He noted that in 2021, a popular reality TV programme, Big Brother Naija, hosted on the GOTV and DSTV platforms, sparked public outrage when its participants flagrantly smoked on live TV. “This depiction of smoking as glamorous challenged the provisions of the NTC Act, 2015 on on-screen smoking, it also threatened the gains made on the ban on TAPS in Nigeria. When it happened, the tobacco control community called on the National Broadcasting Commission to act immediately.

“This year, as the program is about to begin its 7th season, we are drawing the attention of the NBC to proactively engage the organisers of the show to ensure that there is no repeat of last year’s violations. We wish to make it clear that should there be a reluctance on the part of the regulators or the organizers to ensure a smokefree program, we will explore every available option in the interest of public health,” said Nwokorie.

He stressed that entertainment products set the agenda for many young people because they are the eyes through which they see the world, while calling on NBC to exercise its mandate to ensure that BBN does not flout any provision of the NTC Act and should any of the provisions be flouted, the Commission must enforce to full effect such penalties as listed in the law.

He also called on the Broadcasting Organisation of Nigeria (BON) to caution its members from flouting tobacco control laws, while urging the National Film and Video Censors Board (NFVCB) to live up to its responsibility.