NCWO wants the govt to combat sale of illicit cigarettes

KUALA LUMPUR: National Council of Women's Organisations Malaysia (NCWO) wants the government to combat the sale of illicit cigarettes by restricting premises licences.
Its president Tan Sri Dr Sharifah Hapsah Syed Hasan Shahabudin in a statement here today said that due to the increase in sales of illicit cigarettes, there had been efforts to revive the sale of "kiddie packs".
"There has been pressure on the government to bring back the sale of "kiddie packs" which has been banned by the government in 2010.
"We believe that the government should not be put under such pressure as tobacco-related diseases contributes to 1 in 10 adult deaths worldwide," she said.
In the Malaysian context, Sharifah Hapsah said that currently there are 4.7 million smokers and every day, some 50 teenagers begin smoking, most of them start before the age of 18.
"Making cigarettes affordable for our youths and children will clearly result in far greater repercussion than we can imagine," she said. — Bernama