Vape company in Kuching fined RM20,000 for promoting products openly

KUCHING (Jan 20): A vape retail company was fined RM20,000 by the Magistrates’ Court here on Monday (Jan 19) for openly promoting vaping products at a premises in Kuching last October.

Magistrate Ling Hui Chuan imposed the sentence on the company, which was represented by its business premises manager, a 33-year-old man, who pleaded guilty to a charge under Section 9(1) of the Control of Smoking Products for Public Health Act 2024 (Act 852).

Section 9(1) provides for a prison term of up to two years, a fine of between RM20,000 and RM100,000, or both upon conviction.

According to the facts of the case, the company committed the offence on Oct 6 last year by promoting smoking products via a poster at its premises in Kuching that carried the slogan “BEST VALUE FOR MONEY”.

In mitigation, the company’s representative sought a lighter sentence, saying it was the firm’s first offence and assuring the court that the violation would not recur.

However, prosecuting officer Mohd Fairos Ibrahim from the Kuching Division Health Office’s Inspectorate and Legal Unit urged the court to impose a deterrent sentence, submitting that Act 852 prohibits any company or individual from promoting smoking products, including tobacco alternatives, whether at premises or on social media, as such promotion may encourage public use and purchase of smoking materials.

He further noted that the offence is non-compoundable and called for a sentence commensurate with the seriousness of the violation to serve as a warning to the company and other tobacco-related businesses.

The company was not represented by counsel during the proceedings.

Meanwhile, in a separate courtroom, another specialty shop company pleaded not guilty to a charge framed under Section 10(1) of Act 852 before Magistrate Mason Jaro Lenya Barayan, for displaying vaping products in a manner visible from outside its shop.

Prosecuting officer Tazudin Murni from the Sarawak Health Department’s Inspectorate and Legal Section applied for a mention date, and the court fixed Feb 23 for further proceedings.