KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia has comprehensive regulations on smoking and tobacco control and does not need to follow other countries in banning vape and its products, says Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad.
When asked if the country should follow the Maldives, which has banned vape, the Health Minister said Malaysia should instead focus on the implementation and enforcement of the Control of Smoking Products for Public Health Act 2024 (Act 852).
"We don’t need to take examples from any country. During the early stages of drafting this legislation, we took benchmarks and best practices from all over the world.
"However, at this point, we already have a stand-alone law that will regulate smoking products, enforce orders, and apply the necessary regulations.
"You don't have to keep looking at others for guidance because we already have ours, which is stand-alone and comprehensive to address issues related to smoking control," he said.
Dzulkefly was speaking at a press conference after launching the JomQuit portal’s latest chatbot programme, “Cik Era Chatbot,” at Prince Court Medical Centre here on Tuesday (Oct 15).
Earlier, the Maldives became the latest country to ban electronic cigarettes after its president Mohamed Muizzu instructed relevant authorities to initiate the necessary actions to prohibit the import of vaporiser devices, accessories and parts starting from Nov 15 this year.
Starting Dec 15, the ban would also apply to the possession, use, manufacturing, sale, promotion, and free distribution of vaporiser devices throughout the country.
There were serious public health concerns about ecigarettes at a global scale as frequent use of the product can cause nicotine addiction as well as produce carcinogenic compounds through the use of flavouring and additive agents in vaping.
