BBG Governor Victor Ashe said Office of Cuba Broadcasting should ban smoking on its premises due to health and safety issues
Victor Ashe
“The recent fire started in the outside smoking area adjacent to the main building. The smoking area has now been moved to the ares in the front next to the guard house. It should be removed all together,” Ashe said. “It is a serious health issue and also now a safety issue. We should offer non smoking programs to those employees who wish to transition from smoking to non smoking.”
“The taxpayers and the Board needs a full report on the cost of the fire, how much insurance will cover and how much taxpayers will have to cover and the full extend of damage. That was not available at the april 24 meeting and I have asked OCB director Carlos Garcia to provide this information to us.” Ashe added.
“I also asked that the board be given a report on the OCB lawsuit which is many years old and continues to risk financial costs to the taxpayer. We should at least determine if a settlement is possible,” Ashe added.
Ashe added he “was deeply concerned about the failure to record the April 24 BBG adjourned Board meeting. It was most unfortunate and I really do not know what the facts are behind this. However, for an agency whose mission is transparency and the full news, we should apply those standards to ourselves. It is rare that we discuss matters which should be confidential. I favor openness and am glad many of my colleagues share this view,” he added.
I humbly disagree with Victor Ashe regarding the desire to ban all smoking at the OCB. I do not smoke myself (having given up the habit over 20 years ago) and do consider it an unhealthy habit. However, that is and should remain a personal choice.
Employees have smoked at the OCB for over 15 years without a similar incident. I think the solution OCB management iinstituted – to move the designated smoking area away from the building is a wise one and it shuld be sufficient to prevent this type of thing from happening again. I don’t think that trying to use this incident in order to force one’s personal convictions about what is healthy or not on every employee would be constructive.
This is a subject worthy of debate. I admire and respect Tim Shamble and the working men and women he represents. He knows of my interest in securing more openness in the way BBG and OCB treat employees and trying to settle old lawsuits if possible.
Smoking is an unhealthy habit. OCB should offer programs to assist persons who may wish to abandon smoking too. I hope to visit the OCB office in Miami to see firsthand the damage from the fire.
Victor Ashe