Ministry of Health does not victimize vapers, says Dr Noor Azmi

TAIPING: The Ministry of Health is not oppressing e-cigarette or vaping operators following several rounds of searches and seizures by authorities.

Deputy Health Minister Datuk Dr Noor Azmi Ghazali said raids on vaping premises were not done recklessly and were carried out for a specific reason based on regulations and laws in force.

“No one wants to oppress (vapers), we want to keep people healthy.

“I believe the action (raiding the vaping scene) was done for certain reasons,” he said when met by reporters after the launch of a first aid training program. and the use of an automatic external defibrillator (AED) at Taiping Zoo and the Night Safari Pavilion here.

Recently, the Secretary General of the Malaysian Vape Chamber of Commerce (MVCC), Ridhwan Rosli, reportedly said that raids and confiscations by the Ministry of Health on the vape industry in the Klang Valley had an impact on small and medium entrepreneurs, which involved losses of millions of ringgits.

Ridhwan reportedly said the raids and confiscations seemed to put pressure on the industry because the industry did not agree with the Health Ministry’s proposal to equate vaping with cigarettes and the proposed vaping law. Tobacco and Tobacco Products Control 2022 and Generation End Game (GEG).

Dr Noor Azmi meanwhile said the health ministry would make a decision on easing the wearing of face masks in the country.

He said the decision would soon be announced by Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin.

“That’s because the case data (Covid-19) has shown a decrease recently, and we’re also close to normal life,” he said.

National Recovery Council (NRC) Chairman Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin had said the decision on the use of face masks would be decided by the Ministry of Health as the council had asked Dr Noor Azmi to consider the need of face masks if the Covid-19 situation gradually improves. – Bernama