KD Knight demands Ferguson withdraws smoking ban

Senator Knight, at a People’s National Party South West St.  Catherine constituency anniversary banquet Saturday night, pointed out that in  addition to fines ranging from $50,000, for a first office, to $1 million and  imprisonment for a third offence, people could be arrested for smoking in their  own home or their “yard”.

“Smoking at home, with a helper, a gardener and a day’s worker, so  Dr Ferguson says my home is a workplace. I can’t smoke in me yard! After I come  from court one evening, and I am tired and a want cool out, I can’t put up my  foot and smoke a cigarette in me house?” Knight questioned.

“But, that no nothing yet: A policeman comes and charges me (for a  third offence), I plead guilty because I was smoking, I go to court, there is no  fine this time. The third time you must go to prison! That’s rubbish. That no  mek no sense. You can’t send a man to prison for smoking in his yard, or for  smoking at all, because if a man commits the offence of smoking ganja three  times, there is no mandatory penalty. But, ganja is illegal, and there is no  mandatory sentence,” he commented.

Senator Knight suggested that the right thing for Minister of  Health, Dr Fenton Ferguson, to do is to admit that the ban was misplaced, and  take legislation to Parliament to address the issue.

“No bother feel no way, just decide you are going to revisit this  piece of legislation: You going to take it to the House and Members of  Parliament must be able to have a point on it. It is too far reaching for you  alone,” Knight said.

The former cabinet minister pointed out that Ferguson had not  taken the issue to Parliament, and had made the decision along with his  advisers.

“It can’t work so, Doc. That’s not how People’s National Party  administration works. I not doing anything anti-party, but I will do things  pro-people, and what I will do, I will join people out there on the streets to  demonstrate against it, if there are no changes to it,” he cautioned.

Knight said that he was not threatening the minister, but warned  that he would recruit 99 persons who are against the ban, including bank and  hotel managers, and await the minister inside the ministry of health, “and as  soon as you enter the door, we light we cigarette, and we say, Doc, send for the  police and lock us up”.

“So that when dem look up the 100 of us, he is going to also see  the effect it can have on the economy. It haffi change,” he insisted.

The ban on tobacco smoking imposed by Ferguson via a ministerial  order last week Monday, has triggered controversy over the suddenness and the  lack of information. The regulations were gazetted only the Friday before  imposition of the ban..

Last Tuesday, Opposition members of the House of Representatives,  Everald Warmington and Delroy Chuck, forced Dr Ferguson to admit that the  implementation process was “untidy”.

On Friday, Opposition members of the Senate, Robert Montague  and Kamina Johnson Smith, tabled a motion and questions, respectively, on the  issues.