BCMA desperate for covert meet
Bangladesh Cigarette Manufacturers’ Association (BCMA) wants to hold a secret meeting with National Board of Revenue (NBR) in absence of mass media. But after the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) Article 5.3, there are no scopes of holding such meeting. ATMA members have been informed that the meet was set today, 13 April, on 11.00am at the NBR conference room and later it was shifted to 3.00pm. Notably, the meeting, scheduled on April 10, has not been attended by BCMA. It is assumed that the meeting calendar has been altered two times for the presence of Anti Tobacco Media Alliance (ATMA) journalists. The meeting aims to reduce the tax burden of cigarettes in the upcoming National Budget. The meeting should be stopped at once because public health is on top.