Georgetown: The Private Sector Commission (PSC) on Thursday said it wants to Tobacco Control Bill 2017 to be sent to a parliamentary select committee to be reviewed, in light of a number of issues including implications for loss of livelihoods.
In a statement, the PSC said it has taken note of the ongoing expressed views on the Tobacco Bill and said while it also appreciates the international obligations that were signed on to by Guyana, it supports to right for the concerns of stakeholders to be heard.
“The Commission is aware of the reasons for the introduction of the Bill as well as the hazards which it addresses,” the PSC said.
However it stated that the Select Committee of Parliament is a platform which belongs to the people of Guyana and the body said it joins in the call by the industry to refer the Bill to a Select Committee.
“The Private Sector Commission urges the Government of Guyana to address the civil rights issues contained in the Bill through the utilisation of the process of the Select Committee of Parliament,” the PSC said.
The private sector body said Guyana has, over many years, come a long way in the controlling the practice of smoking in public places and the public as well as various operators of bars, hotels, cinemas, other businesses and smokers themselves should be applauded.
“We are aware that the Government of Guyana believes that the World Health Organisation’s Protocols dictate that Government should not engage in dialogue with the tobacco industry.The Private Sector Commission views this as an inconsistency. Ours is an independent jurisdiction called Guyana and most democracies were built on dialogue,” it stated.
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