Bans Lack Bite In Malaysia

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Will banning the display of cigarettes really curb smoking? This began last month under a new law. To answer this, we need to look at what has happened in Malaysia before.
When Kelantan clamped down on four-digit gambling shops in the early 1990s, a senior journalist then laughed and told me: “Did you know that people in Kota Bharu now ask long-distance taxi drivers to buy 4D numbers for them in Jerteh?”
Jerteh is a town in Terengganu, just across the state border with Kelantan, which had not banned such betting shops then. Drivers made a commission on this “service.”
Some 20 years later, in 2011, the media exposed that gambling and prostitution in the “holy state” of Kelantan were still going on.
The then-menteri besar, Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat, blamed this on lax enforcement by local government officers.
In 2021, Kedah banned four-digit shops, but this time, only a few taxi drivers were speeding across the state border into neighbouring Penang.
Why bother when people can buy illegal 4D on their phones? Those who prefer a more personal touch can even call or meet “runners”.
Some are bold enough to set up a front, such as a handphone store, right next to legal 4D outlets such as Magnum, Sports Toto, and Damacai.
Illegal operators, who offer bigger prizes, are estimated to be 1.5 to two times larger than the legitimate ones.
This has caused the government to lose about RM3 billion annually in gambling taxes.
This has been going on for years, and it’s hard to clamp down on since runners can make between RM3,000 and RM10,000 a month.
A source told The Star that they are well “taken care of” by syndicates, which means that any runners caught are slapped only with fines and escape jail sentences.
Porn and drugs
Similarly, clamping down on pornography has not proven effective. The government has, in recent years, blocked thousands of porn websites, but these can be bypassed using technological tools such as the Virtual Private Network (VPN).
In fact, websites are not even needed anymore as explicit content is easily accessible on social media and messaging platforms such as WhatsApp and Telegram.
The most glaring example is drugs. It’s well known that our penalties for the trafficking of narcotics have been severe for decades, including the death penalty.
In the 1980s, I remember crossing the district border from Seremban to Kuala Pilah only to be greeted with a “Selamat Datang” sign that featured a hangman’s noose, warning about the punishment for drug crimes. What a “warm welcome” indeed!
Over 40 years later, drug abuse in Malaysia has now reached a “critical level” and threatens social and economic stability, warned Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi in May this year.
Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid HamidiAccording to data, 192,857 drug users and addicts were recorded in 2024, up by nearly a third from the previous year.
The greatest irony is that the “most religious” states under PAS rule were the worst hit. Zahid revealed that Kelantan has the highest drug abuse rate in Malaysia, with 1,130 users per 100,000 population, followed by Terengganu (974), Perlis (965), and Kedah (898).
What these three examples show is this - it’s all about enforcement, or the lack thereof, and public attitudes.
When there is a will, people will find a way. When there is strong demand, a lucrative market will be there. Bans merely drive habits underground.
Genuine rehabilitation of gambling, porn, and drug addicts is probably more useful than the blunt tools of shutdowns. However, this is a more complicated process that needs a lot of effort, while banning something merely requires passing a law on paper.
Smothering smoking
Now we come to the latest ban under the Control of Smoking Products for Public Health Act 2024 (Act 852). Under the law, tobacco and vape products cannot be openly displayed and must be kept in closed cabinets to limit visibility.
Despite the noble intentions behind this move, we must ask: will it really work? Or will people again find alternative avenues?
Consumers Association of Subang and Shah Alam (Cassa) president Jacob George noted that the display ban would be ineffective without strict enforcement.
Act 852 is under the purview of the Health Ministry, but can our already overworked health inspectors really patrol every coffee shop and stall to check if cigarettes are inside a cupboard?
I would prefer that they spend more time, like in the 1970s, checking to see if homes have stagnant water breeding mosquitoes. Fogging can only be a temporary solution when water remains in plastic containers, carelessly thrown around.
While cigarettes at kopitiams and convenience stores are hidden away behind cabinets, will online displays and sales take their place? Cigarettes have been heavily taxed, and youths have instead turned to cheaper vaping.
With colourful vape pods and funky flavours such as coffee, strawberry and lemon, it’s little wonder that the 2023 Global Adult Tobacco Survey for Malaysia showed that the number of e-cigarette users has grown by over 600 percent over the past 12 years.
Impose high taxes
If we are serious about curbing smoking, vape products must also be heavily taxed to make them prohibitively expensive. Right now, they are as cheap as a plate of chicken rice, thus tempting users.
Vaping has become such a serious problem that Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Air Tawar in Kota Tinggi, Johor, knocked down the external walls of toilets to prevent students from hiding inside to puff away.
“A strict reminder has been given,” said the principal.
“If there is still sweet fruity vapour appearing, I will cut the toilet cubicles even further, so that even when they squat, their heads are visible.”
In conclusion, past actions against 4D outlets, porn, and drugs have not really worked as people have found other avenues. A similar fate may await the latest actions to curb smoking.
Solutions can only work if they are properly thought out to close loopholes. - Mkini
ANDREW SIA is a veteran journalist who likes teh tarik khau kurang manis. You are welcome to give him ideas to brew at [email protected].
The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of MMKtT.

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