Forty-eight traders have been charged in court for selling cigarettes without the graphic health warnings on their packages,Health Minister Liow Tiong Lai said.
He said the offences were detected during a Tobacco Revenue Control Regulations 2004 enforcement operation, or Ops Basuh, on Jan 5 and Feb 22 which also led to the confiscation of 6,359 packets of cigarettes worth RM22,225.
“Traders found guilty of selling illegal cigarettes can be fined not more than RM10,000 or jailed a minimum of two years under the PPKHT 2004,” he told reporters after launching the Regional Workshop on the Mid-term Review of Country Projects for Health Promotion Foundations and Tobacco Taxation, here today.
Liow said 242 traders were compounded for selling cigarettes below the minimum price fixed by the government, involving compounds of RM121,000.
He added that the public is urged to help them eradicate sales of illegal cigarettes by reporting the matter to district health offices.
– Bernama
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