Hello Big Boss!! How are you today? I hope you're always healthy, your sustenance is abundant, and all your activities are made easy!

Malaysia is currently planning and reviewing a bill to ban the use of cigarettes to reduce the risk of cancer in its population. This is an initiative from the Malaysian Ministry of Health in the Tobacco and Smoking Control Bill 2022 which states a ban on the sale of tobacco and related products, especially for those born in 2007 onwards.

This effort is dubbed the GEG (Generational End Game) movement and was submitted to the assembly on Wednesday, July 27, 2022, and was first read by Khairy Jamaluddin, the Malaysian Minister of Health.

Meanwhile, on Monday, August 1, 2022, the second and third readings of the bill have been completed. If Malaysian members of parliament approve the bill, Malaysia will become the second country in the world to implement a smoking law after New Zealand, which is in first place.

Through his tweet, Khairy also revealed that Malaysia spent approximately 1.4 billion USD in 2020 to treat lung cancer, heart disease, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) caused by smoking.

This cost is estimated to continue to increase by 8.8 billion RM in 2030. However, the tax collected from the tobacco industry annually is only 3 billion RM.

"6 billion RM for treatment and 3 billion RM in tax revenue. Try to do the math. This country is suffering huge losses," said Khairy.

Furthermore, Khairy said that patients with lung disease who were treated for 12 days in the hospital due to vaping also spent around 150 thousand RM. Not only that, a person named Syamsul Rizal Ramli, 46, was diagnosed with stage three laryngeal cancer and lost his voice box due to smoking.

"That device always reminds me of my mistake with cigarettes. This is a lesson that the dangers of smoking are real and very terrifying," said Syamsul.

Source: Liputan6