KUALA LUMPUR – Former health minister Khairy Jamaluddin has hit back at Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing’s scepticism regarding the connection between smoking and cancer.
In a series of Instagram stories, Khairy directly addressed an article where Tiong labelled him the “worst-ever” health minister.
“It’s 2023 and there is still a minister that questions the link between smoking and cancer,” he said.
Khairy also shared clips of a previous Parliamentary session from when he was minister, which saw Tiong openly disputing the notion that smoking leads to cancer, alleging there was no data or research drawing that conclusion.
The clip also showed Khairy challenging lawmakers to stand up if they agreed that there was no conclusive evidence between smoking and cancer, resulting in a resounding “pin-drop silence.”
Subsequently, the former Umno man also cited an article from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which affirmed that smoking cigarettes can lead to cancer in almost any part of the body – such as the mouth, stomach, rectum, lungs, and cervix.
Furthermore, he shared a tweet from the Director-General of the World Health Organisation (WHO), Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, advising against smoking addiction.
“Think of smoking as a slow poison for your body. It harms your lungs, weakens your immune system, and increases the chance of heart attacks, strokes, and cancer.
“Don’t let cigarettes steal your health. It’s never too late to break free from the addiction,” the tweet said, with the #QuitSmoking hashtag at the end.
Earlier today, Tiong labelled Khairy as the “worst” health minister after the latter accused him of being among the MPs obstructing the passage of the Control of Smoking Products for Public Health Bill 2023. This bill addresses regulations on smoking and vaping, and is popularly known as the Generational Endgame (GEG) policy.
Tiong claimed that Khairy only increased his popularity and image when he was still in the Cabinet, while making minimal contributions to the nation.
The Bintulu MP added that many cancer patients do not have a history of smoking, saying that Khairy failed to “consistently prove that cancer is caused by smoking, and failed to take steps to establish a research centre to analyse data of cancer patients in (the) country”. – November 16, 2023