Health Minister Quits

realizing that he had to walk his talk the Health Minister quit smoking

It’s no good preaching about good health if you are a smoker as Dr. Benjamin Kumbuor, the new Health Minister of Uganda is well aware of. Realizing that he had to ‘walk his talk’ the Health Minister quit smoking just before taking office.

When he was being invested for his post in the Ugandan Parliament Speaker’s Conference Room the leader of the opposition Osei-Kyei Mensah-Bonsu actually questioned him about how he could lead a no smoking campaign if he was a smoker.  Luckily because Dr. Kumbuor had just quit he was able to get up and say that he had quit and that there was another MP who would back him up on his claim.

Anybody involved in the health industry has to realise that the moment that people find out that they smoke the integrity of what they say is greatly undermined. Parents should also take note that it is no good preaching to their children to quit if they themselves light up even if it is only occasionally.

Since smoking is the number one preventable cause of death and illness in the world today championing good health while at the same time destroying your own makes you look ridiculous and stupid. In some cases a chronic addiction however leads to smokers having no choice but to continue with their habit despite the awareness of how weak and pathetic they look.

In fact health ministers all around the world not only need to be non smokers but they should also be physically fit, eat healthily and be an example to the nation of how you should live. For example the Prime Minister Gordon Brown, gets a lot of bad press for being overweight especially as there is such an obesity crisis in the United Kingdom.