Letter to Editor
THE Federation of Sundry Goods Merchants Associations of Malaysia (FSGMAM) is deeply concerned with the recent announcement by Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin that the Health Ministry (MOH) is planning to introduce hefty fines for generational ban on smoking and vaping.
Based on the regulations, retailers can be fined up to RM30,000 or imprisonment up to three years or both. This will add more burdens to the retailers who are currently dealing with issues such as inflation cost on raw materials and understaffing issue in their premises.
The implementation of smoking ban for next generation will come with a hefty price for FSGMAM’s members. The responsibility of enforcing these laws will fall on us just like when the smoking ban at eateries was implemented.
Currently we are already implementing the ban against sales of cigarettes to individuals under 18s which is simple as it is usually obvious whether a purchaser is under-aged or otherwsie.
However, with the generational ban, retailers will have to verify birth dates to determine if the purchasers are born before or after 2007. This will make the transactions longer and potentially impact our businesses as it may lead to arguments with purchasers.
If the MOH intends to stop people from smoking, the first action should be to stop illegal cigarettes.
MOH should ramp up the enforcement with the specific power under their own Control of Tobacco Product Regulations 2004 before introducing new policies that will only cause more burden to legitimate businesses as well as further fuel the illicit cigarette trade in Malaysia.
The generational ban on smoking and vaping should strike a balanced approach by taking into consideration the retailers as well as the public’s welfare. – July 28, 2022
Hong Chee Meng is president of the Federation of Sundry Goods Merchants Associations of Malaysia (FSGMAM).
The views expressed are solely of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Focus Malaysia
