A non-governmental organisation, Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA) has warned that unchecked consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages is the cause of rising non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and the sudden increase of young people developing heart-related diseases, obesity, diabetes and others.
This is even as CAPPA has charged the Federal Government to enforce the N10/litre on sugar- sweetened beverages tax which became effective from June 1, 2022.
The executive director of CAPPA, Akinbode Oluwafemi, made the assertion in a statement made available to LEADERSHIP Friday in Owerri, the Imo State capital.
Following media reports that some firms, operating under the umbrella of the Nigeria Association of Small and Medium Enterprises (NASME) …were averse to the new tax, embedded in the Finance Act of 2021, arguing that it would lead to job losses and shutdowns in their lines of operation, CAPPA said the social and economic consequences of their products were more harmful.
Oluwafemi said “While the shutdowns and job losses threat does not come as a shock to the average Nigerian, we are taken aback by the industry deliberately avoiding the statistics of Nigerians suffering from diabetes, obesity and other illnesses associated with the products they produce.”
He said carbonated drinks producers were simply out to make money and mislead the public by lumping issues related to the pro-people sugar-sweetened beverages tax with other issues that are not in the same category.
According to him, the industry is ultimately out to scuttle the implementation of the new tax regime.
CAPPA therefore enjoined carbonated drinks producers to adhere to global standards which Nigeria is still a far cry from going by the negligible but commendable N10/litre policy, saying, “We strongly support the current tax regime which is the first step to help Nigerians change their consumption patterns. Our expectation is that the government should ensure its strict enforcement and make sure the carbonated drinks producers comply with the policy”.
