A LIBERIAN ACTIVIST Maxson S. Kpakio is said to be rallying Liberians to join him in resubmitting what he terms a landmark petition that calls for the outright ban of shisha, the flavored tobacco product increasingly popular among Liberian youths.
HE IS EXPECTED to be at the Capitol Building today, June 3, 2025 where he and other concerned Liberians are expected to present their renewed petition to the Claims and Petition Committee of the House of Representatives and the Senate Committee on Health.
THE PETITION, SPEARHEADED by the Restoring HOPE Foundation International and championed by activist Kpakio, seeks to outlaw the importation, sale, and consumption of shisha nationwide.
KPAKIO EMPHASIZED THE urgent need for legislative action to protect the health and future of Liberia’s younger generations, highlighting the alarming rise in shisha use and its associated health risks.
MANY FACEBOOK FRIENDS and compatriots are requesting the Government of Liberia to ban the use of Shisha in public places but our view is that there is no need for a new law or policy to ban the use of Shisha as the 2008 Act to prohibit the use of tobacco and tobacco products which covers this aspect.
SHISHA ALSO CALLED hookah, narghile, waterpipe, or hubble bubble and the tobacco can come in different flavours and sometimes it’s mixed with a dark brown sugar (also called molasses sugar), often making the smoke smell sweet; it is usually heated by burning wood, coal or charcoal.
WHATEVER WAY SHISHA is considered, it shares the same fundamental component with tobacco even though shisha’s specific method of smoking tobacco is using a hookah, a waterpipe, while tobacco can be consumed in various forms like cigarettes, pipes, and cigars.
WHICHEVER WAYS BOTH are smoked or used, the 2008 Act prohibits the use of tobacco and tobacco products as smoking is prohibited in indoor workplaces, indoor public places, and public transport, except for private homes “where no public business is transacted, personal vehicles “when used for private purposes and no minor is in the vehicle,” outdoors in predominantly or substantially open areas and specially designated areas that meet specific requirements.
IN LIBERIA, DESPITE progress in strengthening the rule of law, the implementation of laws and policies have faced and continue to face numerous challenges ranking from weak accountability, inadequate resources etc.
IN THE WAKE of these challenges, we must commend the Liberia National Police for implementing the Liberia’s smoke-free policy which centred around the 2008 Act and its implementing regulations, prohibits smoking in various public places, including bus stops and workplaces, and restricts tobacco sales to those under 18.
NOTWITHSTANDING, IT APPEARS that the use of Shisha or Hookar in public places is being given a blind eye by everyone; even the Liberian National Police as this has become the new smoking normal for in Liberia.
IN VIEW OF the above, we call on the Liberia National Police through the Ministry of Justice to fully implement the 2008 Act and its implementing regulation to STOP the use of shisha in public places as it is also a tobacco product.
