Speak Out campaign empowers non-smokers to stand up for smoke-free environment

SEPANG, May 4  (Bernama) --  The Health Ministry today launched a five-year Speak Out: Express Your Right, Protect Your Lung campaign to empower non-smokers to stand up for their rights for smoke-free environment, said its minister Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad.

He added the move was not to confront with smokers but rather to give room to 85 per cent non-smokers to express their rights, and also to convince smokers to quit smoking.

“Recognising cigarette smoke as dangerous to human, it was time for the ministry to take this initiative to empower non-smokers so they will be able to say no to stale cigarette smoke.

“Currently, there are 85 per cent of Malaysians who are non-smokers in the country, and I am confident that they would be able to assist the government to make this campaign until 2025 succeed,” he said at the launch of the campaign here.

Dr Dzulkefly added the campaign was launched in conjunction with ‘No Tobacco Day’ and ‘Fresh Breath Beginning Ramadan’ for its national-level as the Ramadan month was the best time to expose and educate people to assist smokers to stop smoking, along with on-going stern enforcements at smoking areas.

Explaining further, Dr Dzulkefly said several themes will be used throughout the campaigning period in line with the World Health Organisation’s focus on tobacco and lung health. 

He said he also understood that not all could remind smokers around them to stop smoking in their vicinity but was confident that 15 per cent of smokers would have the intuition to quit smoking if they were told in a nice manner.

Dr Dzulkefly said the campaign was carried out following a study by the Health Education Division on 1,430 respondents from April 4 to 28 this year, that revealed 98.4 per cent supported the government to run the Speak Out campaign.

The study also showed that 96 per cent said they agreed to remind smokers around them to stop smoking, he said.

Until May 3 (yesterday), there were 25,791 warning notices issued to smokers, while 200,887 educational enforcement activities were carried out with 90,078 premises checked since the smoking ban at all eateries kicked off on Jan 1. 

-- BERNAMA