KUALA LUMPUR: Political will and strong commitment on the part of policymakers and every individual are needed to ensure successful implementation of the Tobacco and Smoking Control Bill, Parti Bangsa Malaysia (PBM) Women chief Dr Daroyah Alwi said.
She said this was because many well-intentioned plans were often derailed due to poor implementation.
"With an ambitious plan like the generational smoking ban, which has not been implemented anywhere else in the world, the government needs to double up its efforts to ensure proper execution," she said today.
Dr Daroyah said constant dialogues with stakeholders, including schools, coffeeshop owners, local authorities, vape retailers and enforcement officers, were crucial.
Tobacco smoking is the most common worldwide cause of lung cancer and according to data from the World Health Organisation (WHO) published in 2020, lung cancer deaths in Malaysia reached 4,319, or 2.57 per cent, of total deaths.
"In fact, Malaysia's 2020 report to the WHO's Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) stated that smoking rates here have barely declined, dropping only 1.5 per cent from 22.8 per cent in 2015 to 21.3 per cent in 2019 among individuals aged 15 and above," she said.
The National Health and Morbidity Survey (NHMS) 2019 estimated that 4.9 million Malaysians aged 15 and above currently smoke.
Four in 10 men smoke, compared with just about one per cent of women.
"PBM supports the tobacco generational endgame (GEG) in line with efforts to make Malaysia a tobacco-free country by 2040 and will do its part to achieve this target.
"Apart from the easy availability of tobacco products in the country, the authorities must also beef up efforts to ensure illegal cigarettes and related products do not make their way into our market."
According to the Illegal Tobacco Trade 2021 Malaysia report, Malaysian authorities seized 40 million sticks of illegal cigarettes in 2020, and 84 million sticks were seized from anti-smuggling operations in coastal areas in the first quarter of 2021 alone.
The cost of treating major smoking-related diseases in Malaysia is estimated at RM3 billion a year and according to Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin, cigarette smoking would cost the government RM8 billion to treat lung cancer, heart problems and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease by 2030.
"Apart from the health risks, high smoking prevalence among men will subsequently dampen national progress and affect our economy.
"PBM also calls on the authorities to act decisively against the vaping industry, following the footsteps of other Asean countries. As doctors have repeatedly pointed out, vaping has just as many negative health effects as smoking.
"In terms of cancer risk, there is no reduction if you vape. Choosing between smoking and vaping is like choosing between getting hit by a truck or falling out of a plane. The results are the same," Dr Daroyah said.
