NCDC must look at all buai ban options

 THE numerous initiatives and bylaws implemented on the betel nut trade, consumption and litter in NCD have been anything but successful.

The NCDC has now come up with a spot fine will fail miserably as well because it is another band aid attempt that will be hard to police, let alone implement. 

The extreme solution is to criminalise the betel nut just like marijuana and then physically destroy the tree due to the serious health risk and addictive nature of the buai to users and the public not to mention the accessibility and influence on children. 

This is probably a fantasy at this stage but very drastic measures are required and certainly a spot fine is way out of the list. 

I cannot understand why the NCD governor cannot convince the Government that it is a serious problem so that an appropriate attention is given to it in order to achieve results.

NCDC has not exhausted all possible means of strengthening the existing law and seeing it work. 

I do not know the penalty imposed under the buai law for violators so my question is why are buai sellers not picked up, arrested, charged and fined heavily in default a prison term. 

A K500 kina fine or a prison term would certainly deter any offender and in the meantime, the fine could be retained by the police for administering buai related offences. 

Ron Gawi, Via email