A woman smoking shisha. [PHOTO/the-star.co.ke]
Health Cabinet Secretary Cleopa Mailu has clarified the reason he banned shisha smoking in the country.
He came clean on the issue while asking the court to dismiss a case challenging the ban.
Mailu said that consumption of the product in Kenya was discovered to be the gateway to consumption of other hard drugs such as heroin.
While issuing his defence in court, Mailu said he was exercising his powers bestowed upon him under Section 36(m) of the Public Health Act when he banned the importation, sale, advertisement, promotion and distribution of the product in Kenya.
“The manufacture, importation, distribution, sale and the consumption of shisha is not licensed in Kenya,” read the court documents.
He defended himself against critics and said the decision to ban shisha was not driven by any "bias or unreasonable bad faith” as alleged by the petitioners.
“The ban is purely driven by public health interest which is the golden thread that runs through all the laws cited,” added Mailu.
Adding weight to Mailu's argument was Director of Medical Services in the Ministry of Health Dr Jackson Kioko who said that shisha affected all parts of the human body especially the vital organs like the brain, lungs and heart.
“Non-communicable diseases including cancer, high blood pressure, stroke, heart attack, asthma, bronchitis and derangements of metabolism of fat and sugar are transmitted from one person to another through shisha smoking,” says Dr. Kioko.
The shisha ban was a big blow to revelers in Nairobi as most clubs were beginning to reap big after demand for shisha began a steady rise.
It is often consumed by working-class young people especially ladies who choose not to indulge in alcohol.