In Malaysia, the heated debate over a proposed national ban on vaping products continues to intensify. What appears on the surface to be a public health measure, is according to THR advocates, a move heavily influenced by pharmaceutical interests. They argue that the push to outlaw vaping is less about protecting public health and more about protecting the market for nicotine replacement therapies (NRT) like gums and patches.
The president of the Malaysian Organisation of Vape Entity (MOVE), Samsul Kamal Ariffin, has voiced strong concerns that pharmaceutical companies—”Big Pharma“—are behind the push to ban vaping. In line with what has happened in other sectors of “medicine”, he believes these companies view the vape industry as a threat to their traditional nicotine replacement products and are leveraging concerns about youth usage and product misuse to sway policymakers. Rather than adopting evidence-based regulations, he claims the narrative is shifting toward prohibition.
Samsul warned that banning legal vape products would likely worsen the situation. Instead of solving problems, it would drive consumers to seek out black market alternatives that are neither regulated nor safe. He emphasized that history has shown prohibition doesn’t eliminate demand, it just displaces it to illegal and more dangerous sources. Supporting his arguments, countries such as Singapore, India, and Australia, which have implemented bans, have still experienced high rates of vape use—mainly through unregulated channels, and increased criminal activity as a result.
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