BERIKUT ADALAH PETIKAN DARI DAILY EXPRESS (SABAH)
Kota Kinabalu: Packets containing horrific images of what can happen to smokers have arrived here and Labuan, ahead of the mandatory June 1 date by which they must be the only ones put on sale.
Some shops in Labuan have already switched to selling these new design packets but dealers here said they wished to clear their normal pack stocks first. Some manufacturers are even cutting prices to encourage smokers to buy the old packs so they can replenish their shelves with the new packs.
The images on the new "health warning packs" are fairly large. They appear on both sides and accompanied by messages like "Cigarette Causes Neck Cancer", "Cigarette Causes Gangrene" and "Cigarette Causes Lung Cancer".
The move is part of the Health Ministry's efforts to create awareness about the dangers of smoking. Prior to this, the Government launched the "Tak Nak" (Say No To Smoking) campaign which was aimed at reducing the number of smokers in the country, targeting mainly at the young.
The campaign, however, was a failure.
A dealer, who is a smoker, himself, does not think the latest campaign would lower the number of smokers in any significant way.
"I don't think it would make much difference. Smokers know very well the risks involved and will still smoke anyway. I'm sure most will find the images disturbing but I doubt many will quit just because of it (new packing)," said Charles Goh Chun Hou, who is among 25 per cent of Malaysians who smoke.
Goh, the General Manager of a local trading company, expects a drop in sales in the initial stage but that after a while people will get used to it based on his observation of what happened in other countries. He said cigarettes in Thailand and Singapore are sold in similar packs, but the number of smokers remained high.
He ventured that smokers who cannot stand the sight of the images may even decide to transfer the sticks into a cigarette case.
"I've been told that dealers in Singapore even sell their cigarettes accompanied with stickers so buyers can cover the images on the pack."
One dealer in Labuan, who wished anonymity, said the ruling was unfair because cigar and pipe tobacco manufacturers appeared to have been spared. The gruesome images are supposed to cover the whole of one side of the pack but dealers prefer it to be split so that the cigarette brand name is more visible.
Some 20 per cent of Malaysians below 18 are smokers and some 50 per cent from this figure smoke daily. As for adults, 25 per cent are smokers with women representing eight per cent. An estimated RM28 million is spent daily for cigarette consumption.
Some shops in Labuan have already switched to selling these new design packets but dealers here said they wished to clear their normal pack stocks first. Some manufacturers are even cutting prices to encourage smokers to buy the old packs so they can replenish their shelves with the new packs.
The images on the new "health warning packs" are fairly large. They appear on both sides and accompanied by messages like "Cigarette Causes Neck Cancer", "Cigarette Causes Gangrene" and "Cigarette Causes Lung Cancer".
The move is part of the Health Ministry's efforts to create awareness about the dangers of smoking. Prior to this, the Government launched the "Tak Nak" (Say No To Smoking) campaign which was aimed at reducing the number of smokers in the country, targeting mainly at the young.
The campaign, however, was a failure.
A dealer, who is a smoker, himself, does not think the latest campaign would lower the number of smokers in any significant way.
"I don't think it would make much difference. Smokers know very well the risks involved and will still smoke anyway. I'm sure most will find the images disturbing but I doubt many will quit just because of it (new packing)," said Charles Goh Chun Hou, who is among 25 per cent of Malaysians who smoke.
Goh, the General Manager of a local trading company, expects a drop in sales in the initial stage but that after a while people will get used to it based on his observation of what happened in other countries. He said cigarettes in Thailand and Singapore are sold in similar packs, but the number of smokers remained high.
He ventured that smokers who cannot stand the sight of the images may even decide to transfer the sticks into a cigarette case.
"I've been told that dealers in Singapore even sell their cigarettes accompanied with stickers so buyers can cover the images on the pack."
One dealer in Labuan, who wished anonymity, said the ruling was unfair because cigar and pipe tobacco manufacturers appeared to have been spared. The gruesome images are supposed to cover the whole of one side of the pack but dealers prefer it to be split so that the cigarette brand name is more visible.
Some 20 per cent of Malaysians below 18 are smokers and some 50 per cent from this figure smoke daily. As for adults, 25 per cent are smokers with women representing eight per cent. An estimated RM28 million is spent daily for cigarette consumption.
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