By THANDIWE MOYO –
THE Lusaka City Council (LCC) is concerned about the continued non-adherence to the ban on smoking in public places and has warned lawbreakers of stern action.
Public Relations Manager Habeenzu Mulunda said it was saddening that some people and business places had continued defying the law against public smoking.
Mr Habeenzu said Government the decision by government to ban smoking in public places was taken in the interest of public health.
The decision was implemented under Statutory Instrument number 39 of 2008. Mr Habeenzu said it was designed to protect non-smokers being inconvenienced by smokers in public  spaces.
He encouraged non-smokers to speak up for their rights when they were inconvenienced by puffers.
“People should not keep quiet if they see others smoking near them or in public places.They should stop the smokers and whenever they encounter resistance from public smokers they should report the matter to authorities,” he said.
Meanwhile, Doctor Kamwi Mundia a lung specialist at University Teaching Hospital (UTH) has said that cigarettes did not only harm the people who smoked them but that they also harmed the people who were inhaling the smoke.
He said unborn babies and small children were also prone to developing lung cancer if exposed to smokers as the effects of smoking were relatively the same same on both the smoker and those merely inhaling the polluted air around.
“Cigarettes contain a carcinogens, cancer-causing chemicals, therefore smokers should be cautioned,” he said.