Urgent decision needed now

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THE Attorney General’s (AG) recent opinion, issued late at night and over a weekend, on the generational endgame (GEG) provisions contained within the government’s omnibus Bill intended to regulate tobacco products, vape and ecigarettes, represents a serious and disturbing development in the area of public health in Malaysia. The legal opinion issued on Saturday is that the GEG provisions in the Control of Smoking Products for Public Health Bill 2023 can be challenged in court because they contradict Article 8 of the Federal Constitution.

This Bill was worked on closely over the past two years, across two governments and two Parlia-ments, by the Health Ministry, no less than three Parliamentary Special Select Committees (PSSCs), and involved more than a dozen consultation meetings with various experts, and government, non-government, and industry stakeholders. This included senior representatives from the AG’s Chambers (AGC).