Former Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin has openly criticized his successor, Dr Zaliha Mustafa, for not challenging fellow Cabinet member Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing’s dismissal of the well-established medical fact that smoking causes cancer. Expressing dismay over Dr Zaliha’s silence, Khairy labeled the lack of correction as “extremely disheartening” and “appalling,” emphasizing the serious implications for public health.
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Khairy, speaking at a charity walk event in Johor Baru, deemed it embarrassing and shameful that a minister in 2023 questions the link between cigarette smoking and cancer. He warned that such misleading statements could lead youths to underestimate the dangers of smoking, creating a “perfect storm” for them to take up the habit.
The former health minister stressed that the issue transcends science and medical facts; it constitutes an attack on public health, highlighting the concerning silence of the current custodian of public health, Dr Zaliha.
Tiong, also the Tourism, Arts, and Culture Minister and Bintulu MP, previously challenged Khairy to prove that cancer cases in Malaysia directly result from smoking. In response to Tiong’s denial of the smoking-cancer link, Khairy expressed frustration at the lack of intervention from the current Health Minister.
Khairy further voiced his perplexity regarding a change in stance by the Attorney General’s Chambers concerning a generational end-game (GEG) Bill he proposed during his tenure. He speculated that the decision might be politically motivated rather than based on legal considerations.
In response, the AGC clarified that its legal opinion since 2022 has consistently held that provisions related to the “generational end game” in the Control of Smoking Products for Public Health Bill can be legally challenged. The ongoing dispute underscores the complex intersection of health policy, legal considerations, and political dynamics in Malaysia.