Black market warning

Shut down the tobocco industry, and turn to fruit and vegetable farming - or better still, medical marijuana - a Nadi business leader has said.

Nadi Chamber of Commerce and Industry president, Dr Ram Raju, wants medicinal marijuana introduced as the better alterna­tive crop to tobacco.

"It is high time the government shut down the tobacco industry," the former president for Fiji Col­lege of General Practitioners said.

Responding to the Government's plans to increase tobacco taxes to raise an additional $53 mil­lion over the next five-years, Dr Raju said tax hikes over the last 40-years lacked positive results.

"We have seen tax hikes for tobacco products for the last 40-years, but that has completely failed to tackle or curb the use of tobacco in Fiji," he said.

Nadi Chamber of Commerce and Industry president Dr Ram Raju in his office.

He said the only one way for­ward was to completely shut down the industry and find al­ternative sources of incomes for the tobacco farmers and the two manufacturing companies in Fiji.

"The tax hikes have done no good to stop the prevalence and increase in tobacco use and the subsequent damage it has caused to the public health through direct and passive smoking is shocking," he said.

Dr Raju disputed the annual to­bacco related medical bill was in excess of $600 million.

"The $53 million which the min­istry is trying to generate with tax hikes over the next five-years does not do any justice," he said.

"I would also dispute the figure of 1200 deaths per year caused by tobacco smoking illnesses.

"The figure is far more than that and proper research needs to be conducted in this area."

While comments from tobacco authorities were not ready when this edition went to print, there have been industry discussion about the potential black market such extreme measures could bring. As it is, the suki market has been established as an area of increasing demand, and concern.

Feedback: frederica.elbourne@fijisun. com.fj