BANGI: The chemicals listed in the Poisons Act 1952 should be expanded to include new types of substances and chemicals connected to new drugs, to enable prosecution.
Deputy Inspector-General of Police Datuk Seri Ayob Khan Mydin Pitchay said only 110 items were listed in the law compared to UNODC, which listed more than 1,000 types of drugs.
"The Royal Malaysia Police and the Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia have formed a strategic collaboration since Oct 21, 2022.
"The main goal is to conduct scientific research on banned substances, including New Psychoactive Substances and efforts to produce drugs illegally in the country.
"Two machines - Tims Tof and Dart TQ, owned by us and priced at RM3.9mil and RM2mil, respectively, have assisted in increasing the capabilities of identifying and analysing drug threats from a scientific perspective," he told reporters after a committee meeting on the strategic collaboration on Wednesday (March 26).
If new substances are not listed in the law, the police will face difficulties in taking action against the culprits, Ayob Khan said.
"An amendment to the act needs to be made to include more chemicals in the list. Hopefully, the process will not take long," he added.
He said between Jan 2024 and Feb this year, 115 tonnes of drugs worth RM1.7bil have been seized.
"We also detained more than 300,000 individuals consisting of addicts and traffickers," he said.
