Dhaka Ahsania Mission Urban Primary Health Care Service Delivery Project has organized a doctors’ solidarity event today on 27 April, 2019, at the Uttara Sector-6 in front of the Lab Aid Hospital in Dhaka city. The issue was to increase the tax on tobacco products. Doctors, health workers and Project staff, from both the UPHCSDP and Ahsania Mission Cancer and General Hospital(AMCGH), Dhaka joined the event. UPHCSDP Program Manager Mahfida Dina Rubiya, Dr Roksana Nasim, Dr Farhana Islam, Dr Nurjahan Begum, Dr Saila Rahman, Dr Manjura Yusuf, Dr Fatema Islam and Assistant Director of AMCGH, Mr Shafiullah Miaji presented their valuable opinions at the ceremony. The closing speech was presented by Mr Md Mukhlesur Rahman, Assistant Director and Project Coordinator, Dhaka Ahsania Mission.
| The speakers emphasized on – |
|---|
| 1. Implementing tax should based on the Market Retail Price (MRP) value of tobacco products |
| 2. Reducing the cigarette tier from four to two |
| 3. Increasing “supplementary duty ” tax based on inflation and the raise in “GDP” structure |
| 4. Easier tax structure focusing on reduction of the discrimination among the tobacco products (prices of filtered/non filtered bidi, cigarettes, tobacco leaf, gul etc should also be included with tax) |
| 5. Every kind of smoke-less tobacco product should be brought under the government taxation system |
| 6. Implementing a simple and comprehensible tobacco taxation strategy (for five years) that will contribute to reducing tobacco usage and in increasing national revenue |
| 7. Banning of import, manufacture and use of e-cigarette and all forms of heated (IQS) tobacco products |
| 8. Implementation of stronger licensing and tracing system, and monitoring of compliance of the tobacco control law, leading to immediate fine and other punishments for any kind of violation |
Photo Caption: Doctors and health workers expressed their solidarity for raising tax on tobacco products