KUNAK: Sixty premises including eateries in Sabah have been awarded the ‘Blue Ribbon’ introduced by the World Health Organisation (WHO) to recognise and acknowledge people and organisations that helped to raise awareness on the health hazards of tobacco and second-hand smoke.
Sabah Health and People’s Wellbeing Assistant Minister Norazlinah Arif said the cooperation of all parties not only government agencies but also the private sector is needed to reject the smoking culture for the country to move towards creating a non-smoking generation.
She commended Kunak Refinery Sdn Bhd here for being awarded the Blue Ribbon consecutively since last year, describing the company which bans its workforce from smoking, as a model organisation in helping the government to eliminate the unhealthy culture.
“The award also shows the employer’s concern for the health of its workers,” she said while launching the state-level anti-smoking week, here today.
State Health director Datuk Dr Christina Rundi said based on health statistics, 2.3 million people are exposed to second-hand smoke at the workplace, 7.6 million at home and 8.6 million at restaurants. - Bernama
