KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 1 — Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said he has agreed to amend four clauses in the Tobacco Product and Smoking Control Bill 2022 that was debated in the Dewan Rakyat today.
He said the decision to amend the Bill — dubbed the Generational End Game (GEG) for smoking — came after discussions with the bipartisan Special Select Committee on Women, Children Affairs and Social Development, as well as Dr Kelvin Yii (Bandar Kuching-PH) who is chairman of the Special Select Committee on Health, Science and Innovation.
Khairy took to Twitter this evening to say that he had agreed to reduce the standard fines for GEG in the Act form RM5,000 to RM500.
He also said that community service would be added as an option in lieu of a fine (as mandated by court).
He added that there will be no body searches for anyone under the age of 18 and no punishment for possession for all GEG-related offences.
“With these concessions, the majority of recommendations by both PSCs have been incorporated as amendments into the Bill,” he tweeted, using the abbreviation for parliamentary select committee.
1. Reduction of standard fines for GEG in the Act from RM 5,000 to RM 500.2. Addition of community service as an option in lieu of a fine (as mandated by court)3. No body search for anyone under the age of 184. No punishment for possession for all GEG-related offences.
— Khairy Jamaluddin (@Khairykj) August 1, 2022
The Tobacco Product and Smoking Control Bill 2022 proposes to ban smoking, buying or owning cigarettes and tobacco products for those born in 2007 onwards. The ban is slated to come into effect in 2025.
Discussions about the potential power abuses allowed by the Bill has been fiercely debated by Malaysians as its provisions allowed authorities to conduct searches without a warrant in premises as well as on individuals.
