President Mokgweetsi Masisi’s role as patron of the Anti Tobacco Network has come under scrutiny following a decision by government to bring a law before parliament without even consulting the industry.
Business Botswana has told the Sunday Standard that there has not been any consultation with stakeholders.
Head of Policy at Business Botswana, Dichaba Molobe has maintained that the ministry of Health and Wellness has failed to appreciate the fact that the issue of smoking is multi dimensional.
“Tobacco is not just health. There are other dimensions. There is trade to it. There is the tax collection side. And there is the national security side. Yet all the ministry sees is pandemic. And they are not seeing other dimensions,” said the unhappy Molobe.
The tone of the business is in direct contrast to the Anti Tobacco Network, a lobby group that has been all crow seeing the advance made in the Bill moving to a next stage.
The tobacco market in Botswana is dominated by the British American Tobacco which has close to 93 percent market share selling over three hundred million sticks a year.
Figures seen by Sunday Standard shows that the company has paid over a billion pula to Botswana government over the last three years in taxes and customs duty.
Molobe is of the view that nobody is against regulation. He holds that regulation is what the industry needs.
But adds that ministry of health officials has become anti tobacco activists, with some of them using that as a campaign for plum jobs at the World Health Organization.
“Indeed a few of them have been rewarded by WHO with big jobs for their stance against tobacco. And we can’t tolerate that unfairness,” said Molobe.
He said some time in 2013 the ministry convened what looked like a rally of activists and have been using that to say they have consulted.
“They are using a report from that rally to say they have consulted.”
This week a well known tobacco activist professor Mbongwe who teaches environmental science at the University of Botswana was given a rare privilege to address the General Assembly of Botswana parliament.
Executives of British American Tobacco have been denied that priviledge.
Like Business Botswana, the industry is of the view that the law will empower the illicit tobacco industry.
They add that contrary to the view by government that the law will reduce consumption, it will increase.
The trouble is that with growth of the black market will come products that are much more harmful to human health.
President Masisi stands accused of using his emotions as patron of Anti Tobacco Network to make a government law that threatens not only the health of smokers but also the livelihoods of traders.
The fact that the anti tobacco lobby has been enjoying access to the ministry of health officials which access is denied to the tobacco industry has annoyed the industry.
