Kota Kinabalu: Malaysia’s new nationwide prohibition on openly displaying tobacco and vape products under the Control of Smoking Products for Public Health Act 2024 aims to reduce the visibility and appeal of smoking—yet for Sabah, where illicit cigarettes dominate the market, the ban risks driving smokers further into black‑market arms.
Sabah consistently posts some of the nation’s highest rates of illicit tobacco penetration. A May 2024 NielsenIQ study found that 79.4 per cent of cigarettes consumed in the state are unregulated and untaxed—far above the national average of 54.8 per cent.
For every ten sticks smoked here, almost eight are sourced illegally. This rampant illicit supply is fuelled by sharply lower prices, easy availability and uneven enforcement across Sabah’s rural and urban districts.
By pushing law‑abiding retailers to conceal legitimate products behind closed cabinets or opaque covers, the display ban reduces the convenience and impulse purchase of factory‑made cigarettes.
But for cash‑strapped smokers in Sabah’s kampungs and bandar, the path of least resistance already leads to cheaper, readily stacked packs from street vendors and roadside stalls—many operated by syndicates profiting from lax oversight.
Addressing the broader ASEAN context, Rodney Van Dooren, Head of Illicit Trade Prevention Asia Pacific at Philip Morris International, warned that “loopholes in ASEAN fuel the illicit cigarette market, causing Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) violations, tax losses, weak enforcement, and normalized corruption.
Origin countries profit, while destination countries suffer. Illicit cigarette exports in ASEAN do not match imports in consuming markets, avoiding import duties and excise taxes, leading to economic sabotage.
Further, international agreements—World Trade Organisation (WTO), World Customs Organisation (WCO) and Free Trade Agreement (FTA)—call for cooperation but lack legal instruments to hold parties accountable.
Solving this problem does not depend on the speed of economic development between countries, but on law enforcement.
PMI's strategy to counter illicit trade focuses on leveraging research and intelligence, securing supply chains, partnering with law enforcement, and raising public awareness.”Health risks escalateAll cigarettes carry serious health hazards, but illicit and counterfeit sticks pose an even greater threat than regulated brands. When a cigarette is lit, combustion produces smoke containing over 6,000 harmful and potentially harmful chemical constituents (HPHC), of which roughly 100 are recognized by public‑health authorities as causes or potential causes of diseases such as lung cancer, cardiovascular disease and emphysema.
Key toxicants in this smoke include arsenic, benzene, benzo[a]pyrene, carbon monoxide, heavy metals like lead and cadmium, hydrogen cyanide and tobacco‑specific nitrosamines.
Yet illicit products add further unknown risks. UK government investigations have uncovered contaminants—sawdust, rodent droppings and elevated heavy‑metal levels—in counterfeit batches, none of which appear on standard warning labels.
Without a simultaneous crackdown on illegal trade, the display ban may simply reroute smokers toward these untested—and likely more toxic—products, undermining the policy’s intent and compounding public‑health harms.
Economic fallout for small businessesBeyond health, the ban imposes a compliance burden on Malaysia’s network of small retailers.
Installing lockable cabinets, training staff on concealment protocols and adjusting point‑of‑sale workflows carry upfront costs estimated at RM 6,000 per outlet.
For many independent sundry shops in Sabah, such an outlay—on top of rising overheads—could threaten viability or incentivise shops to quietly switch to illicit supplies.
On a macro scale, unchecked growth in illegal tobacco sales robs the federal and state coffers of billions in tax revenue annually. Those diverted funds could otherwise support Sabah’s infrastructure projects, education programmes and community‑based health initiatives.
For Sabah, a successful transition will requireStrengthened enforcement of existing anti‑smuggling laws, with targeted raids in known hot spots and enhanced coordination between federal customs and state enforcement agencies.
Stiffer penalties for illicit trade, including higher fines and asset‑forfeiture powers against syndicate operators.
Community engagement, educating smokers on the compounded risks of unregulated products and directing those seeking help toward licensed cessation services.
Absent these parallel efforts, the display ban risks simply driving smokers—and vital public revenue—further underground, strengthening the very networks it seeks to weaken. In Sabah’s context, tackling illicit cigarettes head‑on is not just complementary but essential to any display‑ban strategy.
References:NielsenIQ, Illicit Cigarettes Study in Malaysia, May 2024Rodney Van Dooren remarks, BW Online Bureau, “PMI Reaffirms Its Commitment To Eliminating Illicit Tobacco Trade,” Mar 22, 2025
Sabah consistently posts some of the nation’s highest rates of illicit tobacco penetration. A May 2024 NielsenIQ study found that 79.4 per cent of cigarettes consumed in the state are unregulated and untaxed—far above the national average of 54.8 per cent.
For every ten sticks smoked here, almost eight are sourced illegally. This rampant illicit supply is fuelled by sharply lower prices, easy availability and uneven enforcement across Sabah’s rural and urban districts.
By pushing law‑abiding retailers to conceal legitimate products behind closed cabinets or opaque covers, the display ban reduces the convenience and impulse purchase of factory‑made cigarettes.
But for cash‑strapped smokers in Sabah’s kampungs and bandar, the path of least resistance already leads to cheaper, readily stacked packs from street vendors and roadside stalls—many operated by syndicates profiting from lax oversight.
Addressing the broader ASEAN context, Rodney Van Dooren, Head of Illicit Trade Prevention Asia Pacific at Philip Morris International, warned that “loopholes in ASEAN fuel the illicit cigarette market, causing Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) violations, tax losses, weak enforcement, and normalized corruption.
Origin countries profit, while destination countries suffer. Illicit cigarette exports in ASEAN do not match imports in consuming markets, avoiding import duties and excise taxes, leading to economic sabotage.
Further, international agreements—World Trade Organisation (WTO), World Customs Organisation (WCO) and Free Trade Agreement (FTA)—call for cooperation but lack legal instruments to hold parties accountable.
Solving this problem does not depend on the speed of economic development between countries, but on law enforcement.
PMI's strategy to counter illicit trade focuses on leveraging research and intelligence, securing supply chains, partnering with law enforcement, and raising public awareness.”Health risks escalateAll cigarettes carry serious health hazards, but illicit and counterfeit sticks pose an even greater threat than regulated brands. When a cigarette is lit, combustion produces smoke containing over 6,000 harmful and potentially harmful chemical constituents (HPHC), of which roughly 100 are recognized by public‑health authorities as causes or potential causes of diseases such as lung cancer, cardiovascular disease and emphysema.
Key toxicants in this smoke include arsenic, benzene, benzo[a]pyrene, carbon monoxide, heavy metals like lead and cadmium, hydrogen cyanide and tobacco‑specific nitrosamines.
Yet illicit products add further unknown risks. UK government investigations have uncovered contaminants—sawdust, rodent droppings and elevated heavy‑metal levels—in counterfeit batches, none of which appear on standard warning labels.
Without a simultaneous crackdown on illegal trade, the display ban may simply reroute smokers toward these untested—and likely more toxic—products, undermining the policy’s intent and compounding public‑health harms.
Economic fallout for small businessesBeyond health, the ban imposes a compliance burden on Malaysia’s network of small retailers.
Installing lockable cabinets, training staff on concealment protocols and adjusting point‑of‑sale workflows carry upfront costs estimated at RM 6,000 per outlet.
For many independent sundry shops in Sabah, such an outlay—on top of rising overheads—could threaten viability or incentivise shops to quietly switch to illicit supplies.
On a macro scale, unchecked growth in illegal tobacco sales robs the federal and state coffers of billions in tax revenue annually. Those diverted funds could otherwise support Sabah’s infrastructure projects, education programmes and community‑based health initiatives.
For Sabah, a successful transition will requireStrengthened enforcement of existing anti‑smuggling laws, with targeted raids in known hot spots and enhanced coordination between federal customs and state enforcement agencies.
Stiffer penalties for illicit trade, including higher fines and asset‑forfeiture powers against syndicate operators.
Community engagement, educating smokers on the compounded risks of unregulated products and directing those seeking help toward licensed cessation services.
Absent these parallel efforts, the display ban risks simply driving smokers—and vital public revenue—further underground, strengthening the very networks it seeks to weaken. In Sabah’s context, tackling illicit cigarettes head‑on is not just complementary but essential to any display‑ban strategy.
References:NielsenIQ, Illicit Cigarettes Study in Malaysia, May 2024Rodney Van Dooren remarks, BW Online Bureau, “PMI Reaffirms Its Commitment To Eliminating Illicit Tobacco Trade,” Mar 22, 2025
