Former Minister of Health Dr Fenton Ferguson has bemoaned the fact that the police have not been enforcing the law as it relates to the Public Health (Tobacco Control) Regulations 2013, but also believes that the current minister of health and wellness must fuel the fire that will see more breaches being punished.

The Sunday Observer last week highlighted the fact that State agencies were in a tangle as to which of them was in charge of enforcing the regulations that would prevent or reduce smoking in public places, with one complaint being the lack of tickets to issue to offenders.

Dr Ferguson, the man who piloted the legislation through Parliament 10 years ago in 2013, despite opposition from members of his People’s National Party Government at the time, as well as push back from the Opposition Jamaica Labour Party, said that Dr Christopher Tufton, as the relevant minister, must spearhead the thrust for enforcement, even as a Joint Select Committee of Parliament is continuing deliberations into amendments to the Tobacco Act, as ad hoc as those meetings may be.

“I see persons saying that the Jamaica Coalition for Tobacco Control has the responsibility for tobacco control, but that can’t work,” Dr Ferguson said. “Minister Tufton has to lead the process, even if we are saying that it is the police who are supposed to enforce. If we were very clear that ticketing was the way to go, you can’t be 10 years later arguing about who should be handling tickets.

“When I was minister of health we met with the police, and I want to thank commissioner of police at the time, Owen Ellington, who made himself available and when not available, his senior officers were. We were able to talk through the issues, even in the early days when we had to pull back because we were dealing with some amendments. The police high command was able to work with the Ministry of Health in terms of how we would implement at the start,” Dr Ferguson told the Sunday Observer.

“You can’t sit back now and blame a little unit within the Ministry of Health — the National Council on Drug Abuse — to say that it has responsibility for implementing the things on tobacco. That’s nonsense. That is like seeking a scapegoat. It would have to be led by the minister of health and wellness, because it is his piece of legislation that is historic. Dr Tufton wants his own place in history, he wants that comprehensive Bill. It would be a major failure if, after seven or eight years as minister, he would not have been able to come with that comprehensive Bill,” Dr Ferguson said.

Emphasising that weak laws make for weak governments, and poor laws make for poor governance,” Dr Ferguson called on Dr Tufton to “stand up”.

Dr Ferguson, a dental surgeon by training, said that what was needed was for the key stakeholders and ministries like national security, and local government to be a part of the initiative now.

“It’s not time to play the blame game. Tufton cannot pull himself out of this. I got my licks, and I am not saying it was easy, but nowhere in the world a minister of health implements tobacco control regulations or laws and you don’t have backlash. You have to make up your mind to get some heat.

“Even if Tufton’s mind is on leadership he has to determine whether it is the country and its people that he wants to save, or whether it is about his personal ambitions. The time has come. Whatever we do, there are persons that must stand on our shoulders to take us to the next level. It is Tufton’s time. He has to do what’s right. History will be kind to him if he were to do the right thing,” Dr Ferguson argued.

“The Tobacco Coalition, for example, needs funding. If he supports them, I believe he would stand a good chance of improving his political stocks. The Joint Select Committee must meet with regularity, and be prepared to do what is right.

“Tufton can be robust when it comes to public relations and so on. I will yield that to him, and if he were to do a robust programme and get the country behind him and sell the success of the last 10 years, he would make his mark,” Dr Ferguson continued.

The former health minister, who also served as minister of labour and social security, wants a study to be done to determine what, inspite of the breaches and the related issues, has been gained regarding strokes, heart attacks, and the persons with LCDs that have been impacted by smokers around them, or passive smokers.

“The money must be found for this study,” Dr Ferguson said. “I remember that there was a unit at The University of the West Indies that was engaged in that kind of study. I would urge Minister Tufton to find those professionals, give them some work to do, and use the findings as evidence as a part of what you will use in your conversations, because I have no doubt that in the last 10 years, not smoking indoors, not smoking in sporting facilities, not smoking in public passenger vehicles, must have some impact,” Dr Ferguson said.