President claims tobacco and alcohol use reason for poverty and poor health

Thursday, 2 June 2016 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

President Maithripala Sirisena has blamed the use of tobacco and alcohol for the increasing poverty level and deterioration of health among the poor people in the country.

The President says more than Rs. 500 million was being spent per day in Sri Lanka on tobacco and alcohol and the low income groups are spending 35% of their earnings on tobacco and alcohol. As such this is the cause for increase in poverty and the deterioration of health of the poor.

Addressing a function held under his patronage to mark the World No Tobacco Day on Tuesday at the BMICH, the President said the Government will take clear and direct decisions with respect to the alcohol and tobacco industry and use.

The President said in the past the Government took some direct decisions. One was to ban the cultivation of tobacco in the island by the year 2020. He has already instructed the Agrarian Services and the Agriculture Department to apprise tobacco cultivators on this decision.

Recalling the difficulties he faced as the Minister of Health in the past to enact laws to cover 80% of cigarette packs with picture warnings, the President said he had to directly respond to the heads of tobacco companies at meetings held at Temple Trees in the past.

Verité Research Executive Director and Head of Research Dr. Nishan de Mel addressing the function pointed out that according to statistics the price of a cigarette should be increased considerably.

According to Dr. de Mel, the actual price of a cigarette is Rs. 35 when the real price should be Rs. 55. The tax has been reduced by around 67%. As such the Government is deprived of a colossal amount of its earnings this year, he pointed out.

Responding to Dr. de Mel, the President said the issue on increasing the price of cigarettes will be immediately discussed at the Cabinet meeting and he would propose to take immediate action in this respect.

Expressing his views, Minister of Health and Indigenous Medicine Dr. Rajitha Senaratne said that in the past they staged a war and also toppled a Government to set up a Pharmaceutical Authority and to cover the cigarette pack with pictorial warnings. Even the Supreme Court was approached by the previous regime to reduce the percentage of pictorial warning to 60 from 80%. He said the last election was the first poll in which the health issue figured prominently.

At the event, the President awarded prizes to the winners of an island wide competition organised among school children in parallel to the World No Tobacco Day.

State Minister Dr. Sudarshini Fernandopulle, Secretary to the Ministry of Health Anura Jayawickrema, Director General of Health Services Dr. Palitha Mahipala, ministers, parliamentarians and state officials were present at the occasion.