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DIFFERENT STROKES
BY ADI SATRIA
ADI SATRIA, a veteran of the media and marketing communications industry, lucky enough to quit years of smoking for a healthier lifestyle is alarmed to see this new tool of drug abuse being allowed to continue to be sold within a highly-informed community and questions the role of the " reform-minded " health minister in stopping this new " phenomena ".
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IN late June 2025, the newly formed organisation, Parents Against Vape and Cigarettes( PAVAC), in collaboration with PEMADAM and the National Lung Health Initiative( NLHI), held a media conference at the office of PEMADAM to officially launch a timely campaign to set the information straight on the dangers of vape or e-cigarettes. A key misinformation about vape is the statement published by the Public Health Authorities of England way back in 2015 which read, " In a nutshell, best estimates show e-cigarettes are 95 per cent less harmful to your health than normal cigarettes, and when supported by a smoking cessation service, helps most smokers to quit tobacco altogether."
This statement has been widely misinterpreted and manipulated by the vape industry players to portray vape as an " almost safe " product without any health risks.
On the contrary, the fact of the matter is that the " 95 per cent " figure was only an initial estimate in 2015 and not based on proper and comprehensive toxicology research.
Secondly, it refers specifically in the context of the usage of vape as a tool to stop smoking under official supervisory service and not for public consumption and practice without any supervision, as is happening now in Malaysia.
Furthermore, the countries that enforce mandatory registration of all vape products and paraphernalia as a tool for therapy to stop smoking, including the United Kingdom, discovered that only a fraction of the products passed the stringent evaluation.
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FALSE NARRATIVE
This further proves that the narrative " buy at the vape shop and you can stop smoking " is really false and misleading.
The Malaysian Council for Tobacco Control( MCTC) has also stressed the fact that this widespread misleading narrative is happening systematically through letters to the editors, media articles and commentary, interviews over TV, radio, the print media and online portals, public forums by government committees and agencies and live streaming on various social media platforms.
These media platforms engage individuals with vested interests, including representatives of the industry, academics, commentators and analysts who have financial interests directly or indirectly with the vape and cigarette industry.
Whereas, according to Act 852 on the Control of Smoking Products for Public Health 2024, any form of advertising,
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promotion, and sponsorship of smoking products, including vape, is strictly prohibited.
Hence the MCTC is urging the government through the Ministry of Health to provide clear and strict guidelines on the use, participation and engagement of media, academics and so on in discussing issues regarding vape policies, as well as sponsorship of events sponsored by the vape industry players, the conflict of interests by individuals in a forum or discussion and the enforcement actions against the violation of the Act.
MCTC and Pemadam called on the government to declare vaping a high-risk device that can lead to drug abuse and impact the health and security of the public.
CONFLICT OF INTEREST
They further call for the full enforcement of Act 852 in terms of the promotion of vape and the involvement of academics, media and analysts who have a conflict of interest within the industry.
This new form of drug abuse using vape as a modern tool will result in the same old risks to consumers. It is thus time to stop the manipulation of facts, abuse of the media and the power of the industry to influence public policy on the health of the people.
Act 852 is not just about the law- it is the shield of protection of the health of the public. Please do not allow the history of drug abuse to repeat itself in a totally new form under the disguise of a modern tool called vape!
PAVAC or Parents Against Vape And Cigarettes, set up in 2024, is lining up education campaigns and engagement events targeting schools, institutions of higher learning, youth communities and NGOs to fight against this new form of abuse that will destroy the next generation.
The fact remains that there is no restriction on the purchase of the products, particularly by those below 18 years, and the high risk of the products being laced with dangerous drugs like cocaine and marijuana.
In June itself, three Singaporeans were among four people charged with trafficking a cocaine-laced e-vaporiser liquid under the Dangerous Drugs Act.- The HEALTH
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