Africa-Press – Sierra-Leone. Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) across Sierra Leone on Thursday, March 30 2023, urged President Julius Maada Bio to sign the nicotine and tobacco bill into law.
The call was made during a conference that was organized by Focus 1,000 at the Council of Churches in Sierra Leone (CCSL) Kingharman Road in Freetown.
The Communications Director of Focus 1,000, Sulaiman Koroma stated that the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Ministry of Health and Sanitation (MoHS) collaborated with Focus 1,000 to take the bill to the House of Parliament.He further disclosed that before the bill was taken to Parliament, Focus 1,000 had held a series of engagements with stakeholders aimed at scrutinizing the bill and identifying the negatives of tobacco-related products.
Koroma stated that the House of Parliament had enacted the bill; noting that the expectation was for the President to have signed it thereafter. But to the surprise of many, the bill has not been signed by the President.
Koroma also disclosed that retailers of tobacco-related products had remarked that the President will not sign the bill. Adding that 3,000 people die of tobacco-related issues annually
The Children’s Forum Network (CFN) President, Mahmoud Barrie, noted that the children are the future of the nation, hence, the need for the President to sign the bill. He continued that children are now into drugs, and he blames the delay in the Bill on the Ministry of Health and Sanitation.
He also urged the President to sign the bill in other to save the next generation.Other CSOs present at the occasion made similar concerns but distinct comments about the signing of the bill by the President.
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