Health Department urged the public to be cautious while purchasing medicine. Huge quantity of unregustered Tiger Balm and Medicated Oil were seized. 

19th Ipoh - Unregistered Chinese and Western medicines such as medicated oil, Tiger Balm, U-I Oil for children, Siau Jin Dan, Seal Oil and [analgesics] have been flooded the market. Other than that, unregistered medicines which were imported from China, Indonesia and Thailand such as "Wei Ge", "Abang Boleh" and "Da Ge", patent medicines for slimming and for womb contraction etc are also available in the market. These medicines were found containing ingredients which can result in harmful effects. Therefore consumers are urged to be cautious while purchasing Chinese and Western medicines. They should look for the approval for registration given by the Drug Control Authority of the Ministry of Health. This is to ensure that they won't get fake medicines. 

The Health Department of Perak has conducted 43 raids on Chinese medicine halls, pharmacies and pharmaceutical factories for the past ten months. A total of 943 types of Chinese and Western medicines were seized. 79.85% of the above medicines have not been registered with the Drug Control Authority. 

The Perak State Health Director Dato' Dr. Abdul Razak disclosed today that the above medicines worth RM 774,564.85. They include "Wei Ge", "Abang Boleh" and "Da Ge" for men and aprodisac medicines for women, patent medicines for slimming and for womb contraction. They were found containing ingredients which can result in harmful effects to us. Dr. Abdul Razak advised the public to insist on approval number given by the Drug Control Authority of the Health Ministry while purchasing medicines. 

"Some of the medicines sold in licensed pharmacies and Chinese medical halls have not been registered with the Drug Control Authority of the Health Ministry." He said medicines which have been approved for registration by the authority are normally printed with the approval number on the packing. The approval number is "MAL" followed by 8 digits. 

"Medicines are classified into three categories, ie: A (poisons) or X (does not contain poison, OTC) or T (Traditional medicine) and K (Cosmetics)"

Dr. Abdul Razak said the State Health Department conducted raids on Chinese medical halls, pharmacies and pharmaceutical factories and seized unregistered medicines worth RM 770,000 after receiving information from the public. He said the authority also conducted 113 inspections on business registration. They also visited premises such as Ipoh Cargo Stations, North Perak Customs Building and the surrounding areas. 

Picture: Dr. Abdul Razak (from left) and Perak Deputy State Health Director Yogeswary together with medicines which have been seized by the authority. 

Received Warnings but refused to abide by the law. 
Permits for 3 medical shops were suspended for a year. 

19th Ipoh - The Perak State Health Director Dato' Dr. Abdul Razak pointed out today that the business permits for 3 medical shops were suspended for a year because they involved in the sale of medicines which have not been registered by the Drug Control Authority of the Ministry of Health. 

He said these medical shops are located at Tapah, [Eyrik] and Senama. He advised importers, manufacturers and wholesalers to sell medicines which have been approved for registration. He warned that the Perak Pharmacy Enforcement Unit will not hesitate to take action on these who contravened the law. 

"The authority will charge those involved in court. Offenders will be fined to a maximum of RM 25,000 for an individual and RM 50,000 for company or three years [imprisonment] or both if they are found guilty. For a repeat conviction, individual or company involved will face a jail term of 5 years or fine RM 50,000 to Rm 100,000. 

He said a total of 43 drug manufacturing companies and individuals were charged in court this year for selling medicines illegally. 

He pointed out that till August this year, the State Health Department has received a total of 57,124 applications for registration. 32,070 applications for registration have been approved by the authority. Of all the above medicines, 36.24% are traditional medicines, 12.12% are cosmetic products and 29.6% are patent medicines. 

He said the authority has to implement [stringent] measures to unsure that all medicines are safe for consumption and they shouldn't contain harmful ingredients.