Tobacco Act Amendment Bill: CAPPA writes Senate, demands legislative records

Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA) has filed a Freedom of Information (FOI) request with the National Assembly, demanding comprehensive legislative records on the National Tobacco Control Act (Amendment) Bill, 2025, following concerns by public health stakeholders that proposed changes would weaken Nigeria’s tobacco-control framework.

The request, dated August 13 and addressed to the Clerk of the Senate, comes days after the Nigeria Tobacco Control Community – a coalition of more than 100 civil society organisations, public-health advocates and tobacco-control stakeholders – rejected the proposed amendments and called for the Bill’s immediate recall.

CAPPA said it is seeking the records to establish the legislative history of the Bill, promote transparency in the lawmaking process and clarify how provisions that the tobacco-control community considers dangerous to public health came to be included in the current consolidated text.

The FOI request asks the National Assembly to provide certified copies of the Senate and House of Representatives Votes and Proceedings reflecting every stage of the Bill’s consideration, including first and second readings, committee referral, consideration of committee reports, third reading and passage.

It also requests the dates of each legislative stage, the names and constituencies of sponsors and co-sponsors, records of any divisions or recorded votes, relevant committee reports, details of public hearings and stakeholder submissions, and the Bill’s current status, including whether it has been transmitted for presidential assent.

CAPPA invoked Sections 1(1), 2(3)(f) and 4 of the Freedom of Information Act, 2011, and requested that the National Assembly provide the information within the statutory seven-day period. It said the records could be supplied electronically or as certified physical copies where applicable.

At a press briefing in Abuja on August 9, the Nigeria Tobacco Control Community, which includes CAPPA, warned that the consolidated Bill could weaken important safeguards under the NTCA 2015 and create regulatory openings for tobacco and nicotine companies.

Among the criticised provisions are proposed changes concerning non-combustible nicotine products, advertising and promotion, online sales, point-of-sale promotion, product sampling, packaging and penalties.

The groups also questioned the legislative history of some of these provisions, saying controversial provisions were not contained in the versions of the legislation presented at a public hearing on November 22, 2024. They consequently demanded answers about how the provisions subsequently entered the consolidated Bill.

“This request is made in the interest of promoting public health, accountability, and transparency,” CAPPA stated in its letter to the Clerk of the Senate, stressing that it concerns the legislative history of the National Tobacco Control Act (Amendment) Bill, 2025.

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The tobacco-control community has questioned who introduced the provisions it considers concessions to tobacco and nicotine interests, and which public-health institutions reviewed them.

It argued that updating tobacco control legislation to address emerging nicotine products should strengthen, not weaken, Nigeria’s protections against tobacco-related disease and nicotine addiction.

It particularly objected to provisions it says could permit forms of promotion of non-combustible products through adult publications, point-of-sale materials and online platforms, as well as sponsorship of cultural, social and recreational events. Its concerns also cover proposed changes to online sales, product sampling and the classification of heated tobacco products.

The groups contended that given Nigeria’s large youth population and the rapid circulation of digital content, exemptions ostensibly designed for adults could nevertheless expose young people to tobacco and nicotine marketing.

The coalition has therefore called for the immediate recall of the consolidated Bill and a fresh, transparent, public health-led review.