KUALA LUMPUR: The Parliamentary Special Select Committee (PSSC) on Health, Science and Innovation, which has begun a series of proceedings to review and scrutinise the Tobacco and Smoking Control Bill, must also allow local vape industry players to give their views on the Bill.
In a statement today, Malaysia Retail Electronic Cigarette Association (MRECA) said that the PSSC should allow local vape bodies and players, including MRECA, to give their views on the Bill.
MRECA president Datuk Adzwan Ab Manas said that while the industry welcomes the government's move to introduce vape products, more detailed discussions are needed on the regulations for vape products and the ban on the sale of the sale vape products in future.
"To date, the Ministry of Health (MoH) has had minimal discussions with the local industry. Our main concern is that the Ministry intends to introduce regulations to regulate vape similarly to tobacco products.
"The government needs to see that tobacco and vape products are different. There is clear evidence from around the world that vape products are significantly less harmful than tobacco products.
"This is a fact that the government needs to consider, and the laws cannot be the same for vape products and tobacco products," he said today.
Recently, the MoH announced the intention to table the Bill in Parliament in the middle of this year. The Bill will include regulations on vape products and a generation end game to ban the sale of tobacco and vape products to anyone born after 2005.
The proceedings by the PSSC began on 7 April 2022 with an initial briefing by the MoH and the director-general of health on the Bill itself.
"This Bill is critical as it will determine the fate of thousands of local entrepreneurs and workers in the vape industry.
"Therefore, we hope that the PSSC will call us to provide views on this matter. We also urge the MoH to conduct more detailed discussions with the local industry players before making final decisions," Adzwan said.
He also commented that the external expert panel appointed by the PSSC are not inclusive as almost all of them are known to have stated their stand to urge the government to ban vape products all this while.
"PSSC should be more inclusive and not appoint only individuals that would provide one-sided views.
"There are many other experts at the international level that would give more objective views based on science and evidence, especially on the less harmful nature of the products compared to tobacco products.
"This way, a more robust discussion can take place to balance the regulations for vape products," he said.
Recently, the PSSC chairman appointed several individuals to the external expert panel comprising of Malaysian Council for Tobacco Control 2018-2022 president and chairman of Action on Smoking chairman and Health Committee Malaysian Medical Association 2013 to 2022 Prof Datuk Dr Lekhraj Rampal, consultant respiratory physician and technical advisor to MoH on tobacco control Dr Helmy Haja Mydin and president of MyWatch, Malaysian Women's Action on Tobacco Control and Health Roslizawati Md Ali.
The agency also appointed the chief coordinator for the University Malaya Centre of Addiction Sciences (Pro-Tobacco Control), Dr Amer Siddiq Amer Nordin, president of Addiction Medicine Association of Malaysia, Dr Steven Chow, Malaysia Singapore Coffee Shop Proprietors' General Association president Wong Teu Hoon and Galen Centre for Health and Social Policy chief executive Azrul Mohd Khalib.