KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 4 – The Communications and Multimedia Ministry will consider calls to ban the online promotion and sales of e-cigarettes and vaping products.
Minister Gobind Singh Deo said the matter would be discussed with the Health Ministry and the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC).
“We will discuss the matter to see what we can do,” he said, according to The Star.
The coordinator of Federation of Malaysian Consumers Association’s (Fomca) Tobacco Control Initiative@Smoke Free Malaysia, Muhammad Sha’ani Abdullah, previously wrote to the minister, suggesting an online ban based on the “precautionary principle”.
Sha’ani reportedly called on the ministry to demand all social media platform owners to stop promoting, advertising and selling e-cigarettes and vaping products immediately.
In June, Deputy Health Minister Dr Lee Boon Chye said there were still many online promotions on vape products and e-cigarettes, targeting students, although various efforts had been made to shut down such websites.
As of yesterday, 17 deaths have been recorded in the US due to lung diseases linked to vaping.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggested that e-cigarette products containing tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) could be the cause of the outbreak.
THC is the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana. THC-containing vape products are generally not sold here as marijuana is illegal in Malaysia.
